The Mimic
by Silver Falcon
Summary: Her name is Snidva Sidka of Aspen, the genetic laboratory she was created in. Along with her brother and a now deceased ally, she's come to the present from the distant future for one reason. But that reason is no longer world domination.
1. Bobby and Elizabeth

The Mimic  
  
By Silver Falcon  
  
Chapter 1  
  
"Where's Mimic?"  
  
The green-scaled teenager crawled along the wall, tail slapping against the ceiling and anyone daring enough to trot past. He peered into the underground meeting room, his bright green eyes almost glowing. He jumped onto the table, sending it flying up on one side and down on the other. He tumbled to the ground and was still.  
  
The woman on the other side of the room, still stationed in a chair along the table, rolled her eyes and pulled the wide-brimmed hat down on her eyes. "Bobby, please. She's outside like she always is. It's practically ten o'clock."  
  
He sat up, flapping the minature pair of wings on his back as fast as they would go, but his flanks never left the ground. He removed his legs from the table, sending it crashing back to the floor. Bobby recieved a daring glare from the woman.  
  
"What?" he whined, climbing ontop of the table again. "Oh, did I mess up your makeup?"  
  
She lifted her hat off her head and put both her hands on the table, making a bizarre screeching noise. Bobby fell off the table again, and she sat back in her chair with a cheeky grin on her face.  
  
"You know better than to talk to me like that, lizard. Go find Lilian. Lilian almost always knows where Mimic is."  
  
He crawled back onto the table and had a full body spasm. The dragon-humanoid stretched the length of the table, sliding down it like a cat. He raked his talons along the table, staring at her orange hat with hungry eyes. She carefully pulled it out of his reach as his nails pulled back strings of wood from the table, adding their marks to so many more just like them. Elizabeth popped her hand over his, and he shrank back in surprise.  
  
"Ow! That hurt!" he said before snarling in her direction.  
  
"Don't make me do IT again," she threatened, standing up again.  
  
He cowered and wagged his tail. "Okay, you win. Go see Lilian, yes, Lilian."  
  
Bobby disappeared down the hallway for a few seconds, and Elizabeth started laughing, beating the table and hiding her face in her arms. The lizard boy appeared in the doorway again, this time on the ceiling, a painful expression on his face.  
  
"Lizzy! I can't understand Lilian!" he cried, fully understanding her joke.  
  
She doubled over, falling out of her chair and hitting the floor as he growled quietly to himself.  
  
There was always the possibility of charades. 


	2. Lilian

Chapter Two  
  
Lilian was in the greenhouse as usual, growing her silver trees in large and magestic quantities. The large metal creature was around fourteen feet in length, the body and tail each taking up seven feet. Along her backbone, thin, two-foot spines rose carefully into the air, spreading when the metal creature curled up to mollycoddle a certain shrub. She groaned when Bobby showed his face in the doorway of the greenhouse, the only room in the entire base lit entirely by green lights, except her groan came out a deep tuning fork chime.  
  
"What? Oh come on. I'm not that bad," he replied, jumping in the largest tree.   
  
She looked up at him and shook her head slowly, making more chimes. Her spines clinked together as she arched her back to look at him.  
  
"Where's Mimic?"  
  
She looked at him with a raised eyebrow and groaned again, going back to her plant.  
  
"Lil, please. Make that freaky call. Get her to come here."  
  
Lilian shook her head and patted her throat with the end of her tail. Bobby smacked his forehead and fell out of the tree.  
  
"Sick again!? Lilian, there's too much humidity in here! Get out every once in a while. Dammit! Where's that chalk Austin gave you? He gave you that stupid little blackboard for a reason!"  
  
She made a shrill ring. Bobby crawled to the supply closet and began to rummage through the junk inside. Lilian screeched and whipped her tail around his ankle, pulling him out with his hands wrapped around an almost brand new box of white chalk and a small blackboard. She held him upside down for a few seconds and watched him scribble something down on the chalkboard.  
  
"Well, you haven't used it in forever. Let me. Tada!"  
  
He turned the board around and it had a very jagged, hackysack-looking person on it.  
  
"Give up? It's Elizabeth!"  
  
Lilian coughed then smiled, uttering a shrill, amused squeak.   
  
"Now, please, tell me where Mimic is."  
  
He erased the board with the side of his pants and put it in front of her with the chalk in his hand. Her tail wrapped around the chalk and put it to the black surface. She dropped it and sat on the ground in wait. Bobby picked the slate up.  
  
Construction Site of the new Bank of America  
  
He looked her and rolled his eyes. "Ah. Well...that makes sense. It's the tallest building in Vegas. Plenty of viewing space. At ten at night, yeah, vacant. Thanks, Lil."  
  
Bobby snapped his tail and rushed down the hallway, leaving Lilian shaking her head and returning to her plants. 


	3. Austin and Mark

Chapter Three  
  
The shooting range was on the way outside. Austin practically lived in there, but he was no trigger happy boy. He was a true marksman, and he never missed. Mark was always with Austin, enjoying being his target. Not to worry. Mark was as ghostlike as humanly possible. He found it hilarious that the bullets just went through him, and Austin never turned down a moving target.  
  
Bobby saw the whisp of black before he saw Austin.   
  
"Oh, oh, oh, hey, Dragon. How be you? Hehehe?" Mark chittered, floating over to Dragon and billowing around his head.  
  
Austin's sharp and searching features fell upon Dragon, and the handsome man laughed, sliding two guns into their homes at his belt.  
  
"Bobby, where are you off to?"  
  
Bobby gathered himself up and tried to look intimidating, but with Austin's white eyes on him, it wasn't that easy. "Gonna see Mimic."  
  
It was common knowledge that Bobby wouldn't mind following Mimic everywhere she went. He was usually left behind, however, being the baby of the group. Everyone took this into consideration and also the fact that Bobby hadn't been in his right mind in a very, very long time. He was mostly harmless out of battle, but his time in the mutant concentration camp had been longer than wanted or needed. Not many came out of there alive, and none came out sane. The tortures that Bobby had endured he never spoke about. The tortures that he had experienced had been locked away in a dark chamber in his mind.  
  
"Ah, well. Jim's on his way here. His message seemed important, so just sit for a few minutes." Austin spoke with a smooth, milky British accent.  
  
Mark giggled. "Ah, yes. Insomnia needs an outlet to vent. Who will the lucky winner be?"  
  
Mark had never been caught. He was a cloud; how could he? Why he acted the way he did, they hadn't figured out. Mark was Mark, just like Mimic was Mimic. He was very devilish, and earned the name Puck for his actions. He could kill easily by whisping around a person's head and slowly suffocating them. He was more dangerous than he acted, but they all were.  
  
"Mimic's not gonna be at the meeting. That'll make Insomnia even worse, yes? KO, we must protect Dragon tonight, yes, yes."  
  
"I can take care of myself," Bobby insisted.  
  
Both Mark and Austin looked at each other and smiled. Ah, the joys of a little brother.  
  
"Well, we should stay here, either way. Jim will not be pleased if he comes and finds us missing," the marksman said slowly, taking retreat in a chair in the corner of the room.  
  
Mark fluttered through the air just above Austin, and Bobby sat in the floor wiggling his tail.  
  
No one would enjoy Jim's arrival. When Insomnia gave warning of his coming, it usually meant something was wrong. When something was wrong, Jim would complain. No one liked it when Jim complained.  
  
Most people couldn't outlive it. 


	4. Jim

Chapter Four  
  
Bobby was asleep when Jim burst through the entrance of their underground home. Austin watched as Jim stomped past, glaring at them on his way.  
  
"Meeting room," he snarled.  
  
Mark and Austin sighed, and walked into the hallway. Austin was dragging Bobby by his tail. It wasn't like anything they could do was going to wake him up. Lilian was curled up in the corner of the meeting room, and Elizabeth was scribbling in her journal. Mark joined the area above Austin's head, and Bobby was poured into a chair, still sleeping.  
  
The chairs and table began to shake, Bobby's most violently. The purple-haired man's teeth were clenched, his eyes narrow and threatening.  
  
"You all know the rules," he growled.  
  
There were many rules.  
  
"And one of those rules is..."  
  
"If you abandon, you don't come back."  
  
Jim began to walk around the room, Bobby's chair unscrewing itself and coming apart, levitating into the air. The lizard-boy woke from feeling his stable foundation disappear. He shrieked loudly, sending a jet of fire into the air. He struggled until he slid out of Jim's uncomplete hold, and the chair shattered into splinters, hovering in a sphere at the center of the room.  
  
"If you come back."  
  
Jim's blue eyes narrowed even more, and the sphere compressed itself into a ball about five inches in diameter. Bobby ran over to Lilian and jumped behind her metal body. Her tail wrapped around him to give him comfort.  
  
"You die."  
  
The ball shrunk even more, three inches in diameter.  
  
"A traitor is in Vegas."  
  
Elizabeth removed her hat, her hair covering half of her face like it always did. She grabbed the table, trying to keep it steady with no success. Jim's eyes began to glow, and Lilian's spines turned into tentacles, grabbing the ankles of all at the table. Bobby whimpered and entangled his tail with Lilian's. She cooed as softly as she could. It would be over soon.  
  
"And his name is...."  
  
The empty chairs lifted into the air and unscrewed, the parts floating around the man at the end of the room with glowing eyes. Suddenly, the pieces of the chairs flew into the wall, making indentions in the dirt before falling to the ground.  
  
"LANCE ALVERS!" 


	5. Abduction

Chapter Five  
  
"Lance, what the hell is your problem!? Get off the damn bus, and let's go!" Wanda screeched, balling her fists and clenching her teeth.  
  
Lance wouldn't move. He remained on the second seat on the right side, not even bothering to look at them. He had been that way for a few minutes, but ever since they had gotten this mission, Lance had been overly paranoid. Pietro scoffed and crossed his arms.   
  
"Lance, since_when_are_you_afraid_of_the_dark!?"  
  
Lance turned his head down and then looked out the window. "Since five minutes, thirteen seconds, and fifty-two milliseconds ago!"  
  
Fred climbed on the bus again and dragged Lance out, having to fight him the entire way. The ground began to shake, and Lance thrashed about wildly.  
  
"Let me go! Fuck off, Fred! Let me go or I'll bring down the entire fucking city!"  
  
Fred dropped the vicious teenager on the pavement. He then went to the bus storage and retrieved all of their bags from the compartment.  
  
"Let's check in and eat! Lance, quit draggin ass!"  
  
Wanda pulled the ducttape wallet out of her back pocket and walked to the glass doors of the Blue Lagoon, the insanely expensive hotel that Mystique registered them in. She opened it and counted the money inside.  
  
"You guys, wait here. I'll be right back," she said, stuffing the wallet back into her pocket.   
  
Lance made to follow her in, but she hissed and he stayed put. Todd sprung up next to him and patted him on the shoulder.  
  
"Lance, are you okay? You look really pale yo."  
  
Lance froze, his eyes darting from side to side. He jumped and ran inside the hotel after Wanda. They watched him hide behind the wall.  
  
"What's his problem?" Fred asked.  
  
Pietro shrugged. "I_don't_know. He's_been_acting_that_way_ever_since_he_heard_about_the_trip. You_would_have_thought_he_would_be_happy. Mystique_gave_us_each_like_five-hundred_dollars_of_spending_money."  
  
Todd grinned and patted his pocket. "She musta been possessed yo! We need to see if Wanda can conjure that spirit up again. I like Mystique when she's generous yo."  
  
Fred nodded. "Me too."  
  
The rooms were very exquisite. The penthouse was wonderful, and of course the master bedroom went to Wanda because the boys decided that was best (because if they hadn't, she probably would have knocked them out the window). The house had a gold-tinted, white wall paper with fuzzy, soft offwhite carpet. The kitchen was full, prestocked with groceries that Mystique had requested to be sent there. the two other rooms had two beds in them, and each boy got a bed. Each bedroom had a bathroom stocked with fluffy towels and two closets. It was certainly a change from what they were used to living in.  
  
Pietro plopped on the very comfortable sofa and stole the remote instantly from the coffee table. He was flipping through the channels almost instantly, having unpacked and claimed the softest bed out of the four. Lance had the bed alongside Pietro's, and Todd and Fred shared a room.  
  
"Pietro, move over! You can't hog the television like that," Fred said, picking the small mutant and tossing him over his shoulder.  
  
"Is_Lance_still_in_the_room?"  
  
"No, he's locked himself in the bathroom."  
  
"I wonder why he's so paranoid all of a sudden yo."  
  
Todd jumped on Fred's shoulder and stared at the television.  
  
"Yo, what's that?"  
  
The group attention focused on the television, where a woman was standing live in front of some very violent wreckage that used to be a bus.   
  
"The Mutes have struck again, ladies and gentlemen. There were no casualties, but the driver has yet to be found..."  
  
Todd leaned close to the big screen and poked at the number that was on the side of the metal bus in large black numbers. His eyes opened wide.  
  
"FUUUUUCK! THAT'S THE BUS WE WERE ON NOT TEN MINUTES AGO!"  
  
Todd fell away from the television, and Pietro and Fred got closer to it. Pietro stood up, throwing the remote down.  
  
"Well, at least we weren't on it."  
  
Pietro turned to tell Wanda what happened, but he saw Lance standing there, pale as hell, staring at the television. Wanda was in the kitchen, staring cautiously at Lance's sunken eyes and small pupils. His breathing was ragged and hoarse, and he was trembling slightly.   
  
"They know," he said solunmly. "They know I'm here. Now they're coming to kill me."  
  
*****************  
  
Jim had calmed down, and the chairs were rescrewing and moving into their designated places, even the ball of splinters. Bobby was sitting on the table in front of Elizabeth and Austin, nibbling on the end of his tail. Mark was still a cloud above Austin, and Lilian had melted into a puddle of silver in her corner.  
  
"Isn't he the earthquake kid?" Elizabeth said, breaking the silence.  
  
She had been with the Mutes since she was eleven, seven years ago. She had known Lance for a few years, but he was always shy. She couldn't remember much of him now.  
  
Bobby had came after Lance left, but the routine was always the same. They would go out and slay this guy.  
  
Austin popped the bullets in his gun. He had known Lance, and he didn't mind killing the guy.  
  
Mark was too scatterbrained to remember anything before breakfast.  
  
Lilian knew it all, remembered everything. She was a pacifist, helping keep the others out of danger. She would stay behind and protect the base tonight. Even without her, Lance wouldn't live to see the morning.  
  
Mimic knew him. Mimic was the only one he talked to. That was back when Jim was the leader. She had taken over after getting enough of his attitude, but she wasn't around very much, not in the base anyway. She stayed outside a lot, but when she did come in, Jim would behave as best he knew how.  
  
Jim had found and destroyed the bus that brought him into the heart of the city, turning the sleek machine into a pile of crumpled metal. That made the news.  
  
He could not locate Mimic to tell her the plan. He had a feeling that she wouldn't be too keen on killing him either, so they would have to find Lance before she did. His tantrum before had given him a migraine, which wasn't good. He couldn't just look at Lance and make him implode on sight. Curse. They'd have to leave in a few minutes, and there was no sign of Mimic.  
  
Damn her! If she hadn't overpowered them all, there would still be a set of regulations around this place. There would be no opposition. When he ruled, they did what he told them to. Now Lilian wouldn't even fight anymore, not if she could help it.   
  
But she still kept them all out of trouble. Even he had to give her credit for that. Damn that stupid creature.  
  
Lance would still die.  
  
"Come on. Get your game faces on. Mark, you, Austin, and lizard-brains go find that group he was in. There were a few guys and one goth looking chick. When you spot them, get Bobby to give a signal. If we spot them, I'll get a signal up. Don't kill until we're there. I want to watch this one die."  
  
The meeting broke, and they all left, leaving Lilian alone in the corner.  
  
***************************8  
  
"Who's out to kill you?"  
  
Lance slid his fingers in his hair and sighed. "It's begun. I have to find her...before morning."  
  
Wanda stalked into the room and put her hand on Lance's shoulder. "Why before morning?"  
  
Avalanche smiled awkwardly and nervously, his eyes staring into the void in front of him. "I'll be dead in the morning."  
  
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Lance let out a startled yelp and shrank to the floor. Wanda jumped too, and everyone was still for a moment before the knock came again followed by the rapid pressing of the doorbell. Wanda walked slowly towards the door and charged a hex bolt in her hand, hiding it behind her back as she turned the doorknob.  
  
"What the hell!? GAMBIT?!" 


	6. I Know You

Chapter Six  
  
The mutant with no name.  
  
The blackest of sins.  
  
It was eleven, and she had since located the strange boy. A thought lingered in the back of her head, but she knew the group of teenagers were mutants when they entered the city. Nothing happened here without her knowing. They had checked into the hotel. She found them in the penthouse above, having followed their sound up the elevator. Curious, this one boy was, the one with dirt brown hair. The others were curious too. But the people that came and took them, she didn't like them so much. She sensed that they all were mutants, but she was still to unsure of herself about the boy to make any contact with them yet.  
  
The savior of evil.  
  
She was the Mimic.  
  
Was that the same little boy? The one that cried to sleep everynight? The little boy that Jim never noticed?  
  
Fast.  
  
Strong.  
  
Was that Lance? Little Quake?  
  
A mastermind.  
  
And...  
  
She followed the people, keeping her scent downwind of the cat man. No one in the group had noticed her yet, even though she was nearly upon them. They were going down the allies, dark and damp, the perfect place for murder. Murder among mutants was wrong, as was any murder.  
  
Camera shy.  
  
***  
  
The sky was cold that night, and she stayed perfectly hidden against the dark sky, especially in the slums of Vegas; there were no bright lights here. Her white hair wasn't a problem either. She was somewhere else anytime someone looked, but still, she was not to be spotted yet. This was the smell of danger, and the kids being herded down the road were nervous.  
  
"What's Magneto want with us now, Gambit?" Lance growled, causing the earth to tremble slightly.  
  
"Dat is none of your concern now," the man with the strange eyes said.  
  
It was Lance. No doubt Jim knew he was here now, but these people weren't trying to save him from the Mutes.   
  
So, Lance Alvers was here again. Well, these people were enemies. These people were bad. The name sounded very familiar. Magneto. Were these people the Acolytes? Didn't seem very probable. She had expected the most terrifying mutant terrorist group to be a little more...terrifying. These people didn't look scary at all. The only problem she might have would be with the big one.  
  
Now to rescue the hostages.  
  
It was almost impossible to spot Mimic, even when looking directly at her. She jumped on a bar over the alley and waited until they passed, sliding her tail down to appear as an old wire. The little one walked underneath it.  
  
Her tail wrapped around his head and mouth, grabbing him by his shoulders. Instantly, he was off the ground and into the air on top of the building.  
  
He was about to shriek, but she unwrapped his eyes and his throat but kept her tail around his neck. Most people tend to scream after seeing her.   
  
She felt a surge of power slide into her body. It hurt at first, but then it layed over. Frog boy, huh. Her body slowly shifted to look like Todd Tolensky to the shocked mutant's surprise. She shushed him and unwound her tail from his mouth. Todd was still awed at seeing himself.  
  
She peered over the edge and caught up with the group, targeting Lance next. She spit a gob of slime ahead of the cat man, who was in front, and he sprinted off in one direction, ordering the others to stay put. She hug down on another bar just behind the man with strange eyes, putting on her most demonic face. Her dagger teeth shone in the dark, and her red eyes glowed brightly as she tapped him on the back of his neck. There was another energy surge.  
  
He turned around and yelped, dishing out a card in her direction. She caught it and threw it behind her, lunging forward and grabbing the Cajun by his collar. She was bashed in the head with a bo staff, then tripped, but she landed on her feet and tripped him, avoiding the stream of fire that came in her direction from the orange-haired boy.  
  
"Mimic!"  
  
She rushed forward and grabbed the two boys' ankles, throwing them skyward. Pietro and Lance were lifted upwards with telekinesis, leaving just the girl and the fat mutant. She dodged the blows of the silver mutant, slamming him into the wall and farther down the alley. Metal skin? These people were awesome. The firebreather she had already; she needed no more fire power. She jumped skywards, hanging upside down on the bar. The girl and fat boy went up to join their friends.   
  
They regrouped, and this time, Sabretooth was leading.  
  
"You are not welcome here," she hissed, making the earth tremble slightly.  
  
Sabretooth lunged for her, but she frog-jumped over his back. A healing power? Interesting. This would be useful.  
  
"Byebye!"  
  
The group of four were shoved further down the alley, and she vanished right in front of them.  
  
************************  
  
She crawled to the place where the group had gathered, stationing herself a few feet away. They stared at her, and she transformed again into Pietro. She sped forward and touched Wanda and Fred, then retreated again. The Brotherhood found themselves staring at Wanda, then at Fred. Then she transformed again.  
  
Mimic was crouched over, her tail on the ground behind her. She had jet black skin and white hair, cropped shorter than Lance's but longer than Wanda's. She was dressed in black leather, something like a sports bra and long pants. She wore no boots on her feet, and her sharp nails were as ghastly white as her hair.  
  
"Nothing goes on without me knowing, Lance," she sniggered. "I remembered your name. It's been so long though."  
  
Her voice was not her own, but Elizabeth's. Mimic was too hard to understand if she spoke in her own voice which she usually did when uttering insults or smart comments. Lance was at ease now, but his guard was still up.  
  
"You do know the rules, Lance. Jim's out for your life," she said.   
  
"Mimic, please. You can't let him kill me!"  
  
She raised her head and nodded. "Morality says I can't, but they are the rules. Have always been."  
  
Lance's head fell. "It wasn't my fault! I was ordered to come here!"  
  
She shook her head slowly. "I suggest you leave. The men you were waiting for didn't seem very lovable. Jim won't hurt you if you leave now."  
  
Wanda stood up and walked up to the sitting woman, despite Lance's attempts to stop her.  
  
"I don't know who the fuck you are, but you have no right telling us to leave."  
  
The black woman seemed amused, standing up. She was about two inches taller than Wanda, and her dagger grin appeared again. Her grin stretched to the sides of her face, wider and wider until the skin on her cheeks ripped from the massive smile. Her eyes sank into her head, and her mouth opened so wide that the bones could be seen amongst the tearing flesh. A horrid wail arose from the very depths of the essence of human fear, and it sent Wanda flying backwards on the ground, eyes wide in horror. Surprisingly, no one else seemed to be terrified. Wanda watched as the woman's face fixed itself, no scars, no blood, nothing.  
  
"Don't fight with me, little girl. I can kill all of you in a Vegas minute," she growled.  
  
"What...are you?" Todd asked.  
  
"I am the Mimic. Simple as that. Come on. It's not wise to stay in one place here. Ever."  
  
She walked on her hands and feet, more like bounded like a cat. She dove off the side of a building, and they rushed over to the side, being lifted off the building and lowered to the ground.  
  
Mimic was suddenly pounced on by Sabretooth, who had been downwind as well. She wrapped her tail around his head and threw him against the wall.  
  
"Go on ahead! I'll catch up!"  
  
She slammed the man into the wall with him ripping at her tail. The walls cracked, and then she hurled him down into the alley, making a getaway. They hadn't gotten far, but they had gone into an open street. Lance had dropped to the ground and began to wriggle in pain, and the group was trying to snap him out of it.  
  
"Why, look who it is? Lance Alvers, so nice to see you."  
  
The bald scaled boy was bouncing happily from side to side with a demonic grin on his face. The girl with the wide hat was standing in perfect posture, her arms crossed over her chest. The man with the guns had both aimed at the group, and the ghost hovering nearby was giggling evilly.  
  
"Jim, leave him alone," the black woman said from the rooftops.  
  
Suddenly, Lance returned to normal choking and coughing insanely. Jim stared up in horror at the creature that slinked down the building.  
  
"Austin, put your guns away. Right now, the Acolytes are in Vegas. These guys are the least of our worries. Lance won't tell anyone. I've threatened him with a nightmarish death if he does."  
  
The guns were put away. "The Acolytes?" Elizabeth said happily. "Oh we could kill them easily. I could take everyone down."  
  
"Don't waste my time, Mimic!" Jim hissed. "Alvers is dead! You know the rules!"  
  
Mimic braced herself against the ground as he sent a telekinetic blast in her direction. It knocked the Brotherhood down, but she charged up her own and the ground began to split and crack between them.  
  
"DAMN YOU TWO!" Austin yelled, shooting a bullet into the mess. "NOT HERE AND NOT NOW!"  
  
The energies died down, and Mimic jumped on a nearby garbage can.  
  
"They're coming back with us."  
  
"OH FUCK NO! THEY ARE NOT!"  
  
"Shut up, Jim. There are people after them! They need protection, and I'm not about to let this group of pathetic teenagers die just because of your stubborn attitude!"  
  
Mimic snarled and snapped her tail. Dragon had gone out of his killing phase and was now crawling around to the Brotherhood. Elizabeth smiled as they shrunk away from him.  
  
"Oh don't worry. He's friendly."  
  
Bobby sniffed at Freddy and jumped on his shoulder.  
  
"Hi there! Name's Bobby," he said, sniffing Fred's head.   
  
Fred picked the little guy off, and Dragon made peace with Toad. Meanwhile, Wanda was shooting stars at Austin, who had barely noticed she was there. Elizabeth walked over and helped Lance up before giving him a hug.  
  
"Nice to have you back, buddy," she laughed, helping Pietro to his feet. "Name's Elizabeth. That's Austin and Mark, the dust cloud. Jim's got the purple hair and temper. Lilian isn't with us today; she's back at the base."  
  
"Lilian's still here?"  
  
Elizabeth nodded. "She's got her own greenhouse now. Remember the trees."  
  
*****  
  
"If he messes up once, I'll kill him, Mimic, "Jim sneered on the way back.  
  
The group flying through the air was invisible to the world below.  
  
"No, Jim. He's connected with something important, something that we need. You leave him the hell alone."  
  
"How the hell do you know?"  
  
She shook her head. "I feel it. Now shut up. I've had a hard day, and yours is about to get much harder." 


	7. Danger's Soft Side

Chapter Seven  
  
Not much was known about Mimic, even to the Mutes. She had no real name, no birthday, no picture of any kind of her family. All they knew was that Mimic was from a place where she had been sculpted to perfection, trained in a fast, hard environment, trained to kill. They never questioned it. Bobby had once asked her what her name was, but she claimed she couldn't remember.  
  
Lance had only been thirteen when he joined the Mutes. Jim didn't like pipsqueaks. Austin didn't like him, because he was always upset. Elizabeth had nothing wrong with him, neither did Lilian. Mimic, however, sensed a lot more than the other. He tried to be tough, but he was just a kid. She often acted babyish, crying at every little thing and come crawling to him for comfort. It gave him someone to care for.  
  
They didn't even know how old she was. Mimic was a mystery to them.  
  
Yet, they knew there was something else behind those eyes, something else.  
  
"Mimic, how do I make my jet longer?" Bobby chirped, happy to see his friend around again.  
  
Mimic was sitting on the table next to Bobby. For some odd reason, neither of them liked to sit in chairs. Mimic was holding a bowl in her tail, eating out of it with her left hand and resting her right hand on her knee.  
  
"When you inhale and your body mixes the gas vapor in your lungs, inhale as deep as you can and hold it for a few seconds," she replied, still thinking. "When you do that, that gives the air more flammable fuel, so when you exhale, there's more to burn, and there's more length. Hold on."  
  
She swallowed her food and put her spoon in her bowl, motioning Wanda to move out of the way. Wanda jumped to the side, and Mimic inhaled as deep as she could, holding her breath for about ten seconds before forcing the firestream out of her lungs and nearly ten feet long. She closed her mouth and resumed eating.  
  
"And with your pyrokinesis, you could probably make it do stuff. We just have to practice your control over your pyrokinesis."  
  
Bobby looked like he took everything in, then he inhaled sharply and repeated everything that she had done. Mimic had to move Todd out of the way of the flame as the little lizard exhaled it across the room.  
  
"Good. Now, just the pyrokinesis. Jim can help you with that. He's basically got the same thing."  
  
Jim was absent from the meeting room, Austin and Mark too. They took their meals in their rooms. The chairs were full around the table with the Brotherhood trying to settle.  
  
"What did you do," Wanda asked, "to me on the roof? How did you do that?"  
  
"Oh, that. I learned that baby from Elizabeth here."  
  
"Is it shape-shifting?" she asked, curious.  
  
Elizabeth drained her cup and put it down, shaking her head. "It's an illusion. My power is tapping into your worst fear through eye contact. Then I can act it out. That's probably what Mimic did. So what's your power?"  
  
Before Wanda could answer, Mimic replied, "Hexing. Naturally bringing out the black cats for everyone against her."  
  
"How do you know?"  
  
Mimic smiled. "Well, that's my power. I copy other powers and keep them in a genetic database. Because my DNA adapts tiny copies of a person I touch, I momentarily assume their form for a while, which is also what happened in the alley."  
  
"So-you-copy-mutant-powers?" Pietro said, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall. "Then-why-do-you-sound-like-her?"  
  
Mimic and Elizabeth looked at each other. "You couldn't understand me otherwise. Lilian can't talk, so Elizabeth is the only female voice I can adapt."  
  
"Can-you-do-any-voice?"  
  
"Well, now-what-do-you-think?" she replied in the exact same voice, tone, and attitude as Pietro Maximoff. Fred and Todd sniggered. Mimic looked at the little frog boy. "I like your power, Todd. That's a pretty unique deal right there."  
  
"Uh...thanks yo."  
  
"What's-your-voice-sound-like?" Pietro piped again.   
  
Mimic tried to say something, but it came out a gnarled hiss with a strange animal squeal. She tried again, but it just came out in a very beastial string of sounds. She stopped and resumed eating, eyeing Pietro carefully. He seemed satisfied.  
  
It was quiet for a few minutes. Elizabeth took the conversation up again.  
  
"So, Lance, how've you been? It's been what four years?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Seems like you've gotten a little scruffy."  
  
He smiled awkwardly and nodded. "Got associated with the wrong people."  
  
She nodded. "That happens."  
  
Mimic suddenly burst out into laughter. "Wanda, you like Austin, don't you?"  
  
Wanda looked shocked, but she shook her head in denial. Mimic just smiled, not seeing how Todd's face fell.  
  
"Nah, he was checking you out too. He was ignoring you on purpose. I have to warn you though, he sleeps with a gun under his pillow, and he's an ex-assassin."  
  
Wanda nodded and returned to her meditation. Bobby crawled into Mimic's lap and went to sleep on her shoulder.  
  
"He's fifteen, isn't he? Why do you let him do that?" Lance asked softly.  
  
Mimic sighed. "He got caught by the mutant watch and taken to the concentration camp." Lance immediately hushed. "It took us a week to get him out. After that, he seemed to have been de-aged. All of us respect what he went trough, and we look after him. Even Jim with his temper. We all look after little Bobby." She stroked his scaled head and straightened his ears. "It's close to seven, guys. I'm going to sleep. Todd, you and Fred can sleep in Bobby's room. He sleeps in a tree, so the two beds are free. Pietro and Lance, you can sleep in one of the extra rooms. Wanda, there's an extra bed in Elizabeth's room."  
  
"Where will you sleep?" Todd asked softly.  
  
Mimic looked up. "I don't sleep down here. I sleep outside."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because there's light in all the rooms here. I have to go where there's no light. I'm nocturnal if you haven't figured it out. Elizabeth, show Pietro and Lance their rooms and help Wanda settle in. Fred and Todd, follow me."  
  
She scooped Bobby into her arms and walked down one hallway, while Elizabeth and the others went down the other.  
  
"Are you his mother?" Todd asked shyly.  
  
Mimic looked at him but shook her head. "No, he was abandoned early in his life."  
  
"No, I mean...does he see you as his mother?"  
  
She looked down at the little boy and nodded. "Yeah. I'm the closest thing to a mother that he has. We are his only family."  
  
Todd looked almost hopeful, a happy glisten in his eyes.  
  
"I never had a mother either," she said. "I never had any parents to my knowledge."  
  
"I had a mother," he said. "I loved my mom."  
  
Fred patted his small friend on the back. "My dad was cool. I never really knew my mom. She left."  
  
They turned into another room and pretty much walked into a jungle. The walls were lined with plants and silver trees. One of the trees had something of a nest in it, and the nest was stuffed full with pillows and blankets for the little guy. Mimic levitated him up to his nest and covered him up. She walked over to the beds and turned the blankets down.  
  
"They're clean. Haven't been slept in for a while, and he's the only one that comes in here. Is this okay for you guys?"  
  
Todd was already in the bed, and Fred was making himself comfortable as well.  
  
"Well, good night, then."  
  
"Night, Mimic. Thanks."  
  
"Nnnnt. Tanks."  
  
And with a whisp of white hair, Mimic was gone, not to be seen again until the next night. 


	8. First Night

Chapter Eight  
  
Of course, the Mutes were up by about three in the afternoon, moving around. Jim never slept, spending his nights roaming the base and trying to control his nightmares. But at eleven, they were fast asleep, except for maybe Lilian. He wasn't sure when he nightmares started, he had forgotten to count.  
  
He had been so young during his change. It had all happened so quickly, and then he was a murderer at twelve.  
  
Everything just turned red, pieces of flesh and organs everywhere. What else to do but run?  
  
No one understood. No one understood what sleep brought to his mind. Those dreams. Those tortures.  
  
There was always the fear. Those nightmares taking him into a trance deeper than evil. He knew he didn't act it, but he did care for his family. The only family that he had.   
  
He hated her with a passion, but she could remotely relate to him, whatever fright he had in his head. He knew of the number.  
  
191494221  
  
He had tried to figure it out, as if it were a code. No one else knew it was there, the tiny scars on Mimic's tail. He knew what it meant. They would all know what it meant if showed.  
  
A laboratory.  
  
That was all he knew of her. She had been a lab experiment. What tests could they have possible ran on her? The scar had been there since she was very little, because it was almost as black as her skin was.  
  
He never knew her name. No one knew her name, birthdate. But he wanted to. He hated her, wished she would disappear, but there was no chance of that happening. There was nothing he knew about. Yet, she knew everything about him, birthdate, favorite color.  
  
Who was the Mimic?  
  
Perhaps his nightmares were because of her. He wasn't sure. They had always been there, even before Mimic. He wanted to find her now and get answers, but he knew he couldn't keep her in one place for more than ten minutes. She was built for speed.  
  
"Who are you?"  
  
So, the Acolytes were in Vegas. Ah, wouldn't that be the way to get their names on global television. It was definitely a win-win scenario. The Acolytes. Hell, Lilian could take Magneto out with all four legs tied behind her back. Mimic? Ah, she'd take them all out in probably ten minutes. It wasn't as if she was weak.  
  
Maybe they would go after the Acolytes. It was their domain. It was fair. It was safe.  
  
"DAMN YOU!"  
  
The number, what did it mean!? What did it mean? It was a lab number. A serial code?  
  
Why was she here? Why was she defending the little twerp? Lance had ran away. He didn't deserve to come back. It was the rules.  
  
"FUCK YOU TO HELL! WHOEVER YOU FUCKING ARE!"  
  
There was almost no feeling between Mimic and Jim. Most of the time, they fought. Of course, she was more passive, only vicious when provoked. There was just no reason for her, no reason for her to be around. He wanted her dead. He wanted his reign back. They could destroy the Acolytes without her help.  
  
But dammit, so much to know! So much that he wanted to know first. Who was the Mimic? Where did she come from? She and Austin were both killers, but she could take Austin out like nothing at all. Who was the Mimic? She was a killer. She was a fighter. She could make the Acolytes bow to her every whim.   
  
But who was she?  
  
What was she?  
  
A lab experiment. The number. 191494221  
  
He hated her. He wanted her dead.  
  
"DAMMIT!"  
  
The syringe on his nightstand went into his arm. Jim was no drug user, not heroin. It was his name in that plastic. Insomnia. The waking drugs kept him from killing everything in base.  
  
Damn. He could feel that blast long before she charged it. She was powerful. Who was she?  
  
Who was the Mimic?  
  
****************  
  
"Why did you leave?" It was a harsh growl that he knew so well.  
  
Lance wasn't in the bed when he woke, he was in a dark place, lit only by two red lights. The lights faded just enough where he could see the pupils. Then the light faded all together.  
  
"Why did you leave?" She wasn't using Elizabeth's voice.  
  
"Why'd you bring me here?" he growled in response.  
  
"I wanted answers." He knew her speech, tough to understand as it was.  
  
He was quiet. He felt Mimic's tail curl around his arm, then he saw the lights again.  
  
"I wanted a family. Someone promised me a family, a real family..."  
  
Mimic sighed, knowing what he wanted most of all. "A family. Heh. Sounds nice, doesn't it? Did you get a family?"   
  
Lance sighed and shook his head. "Not the one I wanted, but you know, the guys are my family."  
  
He heard her laugh softly. "Then I did the right thing by saving you and your friends. But why are the Acolytes here?"  
  
"Magneto must have told Mystique to get us here. She even gave us money to go. I...knew the consequences, but I couldn't hide."  
  
"No one can hide here. Even if you had evaded Jim, you wouldn't have gotten past me the first night."  
  
"True."  
  
********************  
  
Bobby fell out of his nest, landing on the floor in a light thud. Like nothing ever happened, he was up and bounding for Todd's sleeping figure.  
  
"Wakey wakey!"  
  
Bobby, surprisingly, was such a morning person that it often was treatening to his health. Jim was the only one that it didn't bother, but Bobby had been shot by Austin before, bounding into his room and barking happily. Thank God for Bobby's scales. Austin shot him in his chest, but the only thing it did was knock him backwards. He never went in there again. Elizabeth usually had many things handy to throw at Bobby just in case he hopped into her room. Lilian didn't care if he woke her up or not. She'd often assist in his little pranks. Mark would sleep through anything.  
  
Todd moaned and rolled over, and in return got the blanket pulled off. "Come on! Come on! Breakfast!"  
  
Fred stirred at the mention of breakfast, but other than that, there was nothing. Bobby bounded out of the room and down the corridor, smelling the air for any sign that Mimic had stayed over night. She hardly ever did it, but she did stay underground sometimes, in the darkest room available.  
  
No one had ever seen Mimic in sunlight. Elizabeth had the theory that she'd melt, much like the gremlins on that one movie. She never went into any bright place; she even avoided the streetlamps when possible. Mimic did not like light. The fact that she stayed in Las Vegas seemed to be very funny, considering that it was the brightest place on the planet, but on the contrary, she only went into the city when the Mutes had gotten themselves into some trouble. She hung out around the outer edges of the city, mainly on the construction site. Thank God for slow construction workers.  
  
Bobby was out and running, dashing down the hallway towards the meeting room, where Liz had two boxes of the same cereal on the table, one opened and one not. Bobby sprung for the unopened one, ripping open the top and pouring half the box into his mouth and on the table. She paid no attention to him. This was his favorite way to eat cereal, and, being a growing boy, he had his own box every morning. They made a fortune pawning off the small silver trees that Lilian made.   
  
After downing the box, Bobby groped for the cereal that had fallen on the table, his wings flapping wildly. Elizabeth eyed them suspiciously.  
  
"You think you'll ever be able to use those?" she said, popping one with her finger.  
  
He froze and looked to the side, before nodding. "One day. Mimic's gonna help me to get them grow faster and stuff."  
  
"I wish her luck, then."  
  
"Naaah. She can do it. I'll have wings by the end of this year!"  
  
Jim walked into the room and leaned in the doorway. They heard some commotion in the a few tunnels down, and then a box of Kix floated down the corridor and into his hands. There was no cooked food in the mornings. It was cereal. A box of strawberries and a knife followed Jim as he went back into his room. He always loved fruit in his cereal. Austin and Elizabeth did the shopping, alternating. Elizabeth could usually throw an illusion on the skeleton side of her face.  
  
It had been a flaw of her power. One side was the most beautiful girl a guy could lay eyes on. The other, the side hidden under her red hair, was half a skull, no skin, eyes, or anything. Just bone. She could use her illusion to fix her face, but that was never perminant.  
  
When Bobby was done, there was no cereal on the table, and he was curled in a ball digesting his Kix. Elizabeth was reading her copy of THE GREAT GATSBY, the most hated book in her collection, but she wanted to read it again and find out why she hated it so much.   
  
She had tried to convince Bobby to read some books, but most of the time, it took him about thirty minutes just to read one page. It was very likely that he didnt' finish elementary school, but he was smart enough to pick bits of information off of them. He wasn't a good reader, though. So most of the time she would read to him if he was interested.  
  
The Brotherhood was still asleep, even the speed demon. It was a very disturbing night last night, she knew.   
  
They'd have to get used to it. Seemed like they would be here for a while.  
  
Bobby jumped off of the table and bounded down the hall to Austin's room. Austin, of course, was awake, but he usually did not emerge scruffy or out of place. Austin did lock his door, but Bobby would just sit and talk to him out of his door. Mark really didn't care one way or another. He'd often go out and talk with Bobby while Austin was in the shower or getting dressed.  
  
Bobby stopped outside of the door as usual, tapping on it repeatedly with his tail. He could hear the shower running inside, and he could hear the cool whisps of Mark as he moved towards the door.  
  
"Morning, Dragon."  
  
"Morning, Mark. How's you and Austin doing?"  
  
"KO seems tired and distracted. He's not all on target. Puck is doing rather wonderfully. Slept nice."  
  
"Ah, good. Good, good. Food's on the table. Fruit Loops is what Elizabeth got."  
  
"Fruit Loops sound delicious. Must go talk little Horror out of them."  
  
Mark floated down the hallway, the face appearing in the purple cloud. Bobby growled. No one to play with. Todd was sleeping. The fat guy was sleeping. What about the other dude, the one they were going to kill?  
  
Bobby's eyes sparkled again, and he sprinted down the hallway into the guest bedroom. The door was locked, but Bobby picked it easily with his tail. It slid open, and he poked his head inside. The two boys were sleeping, and he saw the brown-haired boy with a near afro. He crept along the floor and jumped on the headboard of the bed, staring down at the teenager with curiosity.  
  
Then Lance opened his eyes.  
  
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAKKKKKK!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
Bobby fell off the top of the bed and rushed to the corner, hiding his face under his tail. Lance shrieked and fell out of his bed, and the day was initiated... 


	9. He Wants to Fly

Chapter Nine  
  
Austin always kept at least one hand on his gun. He could use his right hand as well as his left, each with the same mobility. Call it a bad habit. Of course, there was always Mark to call shots for him, during which Austin would draw his gun and shoot Mark straight through the head, earning praise from the ghost.  
  
KO was a title well-fitted to him.  
  
The only one Austin had never shot was Mimic. It took him a long time to get used to the black creature creeping around at night, back when they went to sleep during the night and plagued the world during the day. No matter how many times his reflexes occurred, she had never been hit. There was no armor on her body to protect her from his bullets. How any mortal creature could gain that sort of speed was beyond him, but then again, the Mimic was an enigma to all.  
  
He wasn't certain if he was the reason that she went to live outside, but he had some hand it in, he was sure. It wasn't exactly his fault. Most of it was a reflex. He was very good at those and had quite a few. He often shot Mark upon command without even looking. He knew where everyone and everything was in a room at one time. It was just the gift of an ex assassin.  
  
By time he had gotten to breakfast, Mark had turned into a floating mass of Fruit Loops, and Elizabeth was writing in her book. Wanda was also in the room, sitting in the chair across from Elizabeth with her eyes closed and hands folded. He stared at the newcomer for a second, then made his way into the kitchen.  
  
************************************  
  
After seeing Bobby's curious face first thing in the morning, Lance was pretty sure he'd come as close as possible to a heart attack. Now it was over, and the little rascal was sitting on the headboard of his bed staring at him like a stranger. Pietro was watching Bobby as closely as possible, but Lance was only shocked for a few minutes.  
  
"Breakfast in the meeting room," Bobby chirped, his wings stretching to their full potential.  
  
"What's for breakfast?" Lance groaned as he stretched.  
  
"Kix! Kix! Cocoa-Puffs! Fruity Pebbles and Kix!" he sang happily.  
  
"Cereal? That's-all-you-guys-have-here?"  
  
Bobby dashed across the room and jumped on the ceiling. "Cereal!"  
  
He was out of the door in an instant, making his way to the meeting room to see if he could talk Elizabeth out of another box of Kix. Pietro grumbled and shook his head.  
  
"Stupid-kid..."  
  
Lance rolled his eyes. "Shut up, Pietro. You don't even know what the mutant camps are like. He was in it for one week!"  
  
"One-week? Pansy."  
  
Lance shook his head. "You don't come back out sane, Pietro. I've never been in there. Mimic's never been in there. None of them have except for that little guy. It's the worst place for a mutant to be."  
  
"Whatever."  
  
Lance grumbled and stormed out of the room, but Pietro was ahead of him before he even left his stance.  
  
**************************************  
  
The concentration camps in underground Vegas made Hitler look like a saint. No one knew what went down there except for Bobby, and he was never telling. The others had never been inside one. Mimic was making plans to try and take it down, but if she lost any of the other members to it, they might all just be trapped there.  
  
One week of no sleep no food, little water. It had been obvious from his bad condition when he was rescued that he was starved. For three days he barely moved in his nest. Elizabeth brought him food, and Mimic stayed inside the base for a few days afterwards to make sure he was okay. He would shiver at night. He was deathly still and quiet, barely moving even in his waking hours.  
  
Once, Bobby had been much like Elizabeth, having some amount of maturity and a really good taste for a good prank.  
  
Afterwards, he acted like he was seven. No one complained, not even Jim. No one really asked anything. They just dealt with it. That's when he began to follow Mimic around, looking up to her.  
  
Elizabeth had started teaching him the alphabet and numbers to give him something to do. Since he was abandoned early in life, he had never been through elementary school or any kind of school. His transformation occured very close to birth, and that was also impossible to get around.   
  
Bobby knew about the number too. He knew what it meant. They had tried to burn a number on him, but his scales were too hard. He never asked her about it, like no one had asked him about his, well not that often anyway. Mark and Elizabeth had tried to coax an answer around him, but there was none they'd understand.  
  
The camps were the nightmare of all; even the great Mimic had trouble talking about them. It was a danger too horrible to know.  
  
No one wanted to know.  
  
*****************************  
  
Bobby had come to the construction site to find his friend and talk. He found her, but she spotted him long beforehand. He left slight scratches in the steel, but those stupid people wouldn't notice them. His tail waved through the cool night air, and he sat on the opposite edge of the beam.  
  
She was silent, staring over the bright lights of the city with an almost lazy look. She was crouched almost dangerously close to the edge, but that wasn't unusual for Mimic. She was known for living on the edge.  
  
"What's Snidva?" he asked softly.  
  
She froze, cringing as the two syllables escaped his lips. She turned to face him, her tail wrapping insanely tight around the beam.  
  
"What's a Snidva?"  
  
She looked down and shook her head. He crawled to her and sat beside her.  
  
"That's what the letters spell. At least, that's what I think they spell."  
  
Mimic sighed. "The word I recognize," she said slowly, "but there is no memory behind it."  
  
Basically, she had heard it before, but she didn't remember. It wasn't a surprise.  
  
"I want to know what is it, Mimic. Is it a name?"  
  
"I can't remember."  
  
She said it in a way that hushed him. He sad behind her and curled his arms and tail around her in an ever-so-loving hug.  
  
"Mimic, you'll always be here, won't you? Even if you can't remember anything?"  
  
"It isn't that I can't remember...," she whispered. "It's just that I forgot..."  
  
Bobby nodded against her back. "When are you gonna teach me how to fly?"  
  
A smile replaced the puzzled look on her face. "Soon."  
  
"Soon?"  
  
"I have to do some research, first. I'll break into the library tomorrow night."  
  
"What do you have to research?"  
  
"Well, dragons, actually. I wanna see what I can find out about them. Maybe there's something in there about how the babies developed."  
  
"Why do you come up here?" he asked.  
  
"To see the sky."  
  
"Can't you see the sky from the ground?"  
  
"No."  
  
Bobby, truthfully, had never tried to look up at the sky, but when he caught himself doing so, there was no sky, only light pollution. There was sky up here with stars, not just a blurry brown run of gunk.  
  
Mimic stirred, and out of habit he released her, since she usually moved every five minutes at least, ten at most. Indeed she jumped below them onto another beam, and he swung down after her, slower so as not to fall. Mimic had never fallen. She had never done anything clumsey before, even when she was tripped. She'd land on her hands or use her tail as a spring and bounce back. It was rather interesting to watch, actually. Bobby had never made his tail into a spring, and she had told him that there was enough muscle and bone in her tail that allowed it to do that. He wasn't one for technical terms, but that seemed to make sense.   
  
No one knew why Bobby looked up to Mimic, not even himself. She just seemed to be the one that made the most sense. She didn't know any of the fancy stuff that humans taught in their schools. She had never been to school herself, and she learned to read by listening to his lessons from another room and practicing. It was funny. No one knew she couldn't read. No one except her. She learned to write as she learned how to read, but numbers had always been easy for her, even at the tiny level she was at.  
  
Mimic had never been to any kind of school, and maybe that was a flaw in her, but no one took notice.  
  
Bobby perched on the beam next to her, looking at the moon. She turned her head and followed his sight, then let her eyes fall on the bright gleam of light called Las Vegas.  
  
Bobby had seen the sky rarely, since most of his time was spent either underground or fighting.  
  
"It's...big..."  
  
The night sky he had seen before, but it was locked away in the back of his head much like the camp experience. So much space up there.  
  
His wings flapped uncontrollably, something that Mimic did notice, and his urge to jump off the skeleton structure was hindered by Mimic's tail, who had tied both his feet to the beam. 


	10. Caught

Chapter Ten  
  
Mark Balldring had pretty much come into the group with Austin. They went back a long time, the assassin and the puff cloud. Mark had always seemed out of his right mind, but like all the Mutes, he had his battle face. Mark was even more uncatchable than the Mimic because of the fact that he was a vapor. His only enemy was a vacuum which was rather entertaining.   
  
No one was sure exactly where he had come from or when he changed, since most of what he spoke was in riddles or something nonsense. He never called them by their real names, which was perfect for Mimic considering that was her given name for everything. Mark had gone through some deal of school, since he was a high school graduate and had changed sometime during college when debt and classes took their toll on him. Ever since then, he had just been...well...whacked.  
  
He was helpless for the most part. He only suffocated as an attack, but he was very handy when opening doors in buildings with very tiny air vents to the outside. He could turn himself into a solid and unlock the door.  
  
Puck he had found in one of Elizabeth's books, Shakespeare if he remembered correctly. He understood the bizarre language like Elizabeth did, but when he tried to read it to Bobby, the poor thing walked out with a headache.  
  
Shakespeare isn't for everybody.  
  
The only television in the underground base was in Elizabeth's room. They had often seen themselves on the news channel, Mimic absent of course. Terrorist attacks from the Mutes, the legendary mutant terrorist team. The Acolytes had been into the city before looking for trouble. See, compared to them, the Acolytes were nothing. Sure, maybe they were killers, but Jim could wipe them all out with a wave of his hand. Mimic, oh, it would be funny.   
  
But as she was watching the television for the usual signs of Jim or Austin's outbursts of hate towards the humans, she saw the norm. Jim had destroyed another bus or two and was on top of them making threats to the public. Then the mutant watch showed up and tried to shoot him full of tranquilizers. The darts stopped instantly, then turned and shot back into the force.  
  
More arrived, more darts, more chains, more restraints. Insomnia never knew when to quit, but Jim was like that. Then, he was hit with one, and the camera zoomed in on him sinking slowly to his knees. Elizabeth crept closer to the television. The fabled Insomnia, shot?  
  
Mimic was never far away. First, she'd take out the cameras in the area, all of them, by an electric charge or by knocking the camera guy unconscious. But this time, she didn't.  
  
There, plain on the screen, captured in the endless amount of light, sat the black creature that the mutant control claimed to exist. Mimic seemed panicked, and she froze all darts and chains that came in her direction. Jim offered up his arms, and she lifted him easily off the mangled bus, climbing up the nearest building and disappearing over the top.  
  
She had never been caught on television before. The broadcast was about fifteen minutes behind, and that meant that they would just now be walking through the-  
  
"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?! I TOLD YOU YOU WERE TOO DISORIENTED TO GO OUT TONIGHT! WHY THE HELL WON'T YOU LISTEN?!"  
  
Elizabeth cringed at the volume of her own voice ringing down the hall.  
  
"I WAS DOING PERFECTLY WELL! YOU KNOW WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I FALL ASLEEP! THEY WOULD HAVE ALL DIED!"  
  
"YOU WOULD HAVE BEEN TAKEN TO THE CAMP, AND PUT THROUGH THE SAME TORTURE AS BOBBY!"  
  
"YOU'RE JUST PISSED THAT YOU GOT CAUGHT ON CAMERA!"  
  
"YOU'RE DAMN RIGHT I'M PISSED! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT DANGER THAT PUTS YOU IN?"  
  
"NO, PLEASE INFORM ME, YOU FUCKING BITCH!"  
  
"YOU BETTER PRAY THAT DOESN'T GO ACROSS NATIONAL TELEVISION OR WE'RE ALL DEAD!"  
  
Then there was silence. Elizabeth turned the television off and ran down the hallway to the meeting room, where the Brotherhood and Mutes had gathered to referee the match. Mimic turned to Elizabeth as she entered the room, and instantly, she slammed against the wall in shock. Elizabeth stared straight into the black beast's eyes, and noticed something actually there.  
  
Mimic had never been afraid of anything. Whenever Elizabeth looked in Mimic's eyes, there was just a bright white mass. Mimic had never shown fear before. But there was a figure in it now, a man from the looks of it. With the same white hair and black skin as Mimic, except with more beastial legs and a longer, more Bobby-like tail.   
  
Mimic yelped and slid down the wall in shocked silence, not breaking eye contact with Horror.  
  
"Look, look away, Elizabeth."  
  
Elizabeth promptly closed her eyes and looked in another direction. Pietro caught her as she stumbled.  
  
"Who is that, Mimic?" she whispered.  
  
Mimic tried to run, but Lilian was blocking the doorway by accident. She jumped on the table and backed to one end of it, staring at each of them before putting her head smoothly down on the table in defeat.  
  
"Who is that in your eyes?" Elizabeth shrieked, pounding her fists on the table.  
  
The Mimic shook her head in one last defense, but it was dead. Bobby crawled on the table and hugged her softly.  
  
"Mimic, we are your family. Talk to us now. What did Elizabeth see? What's Snidva?"  
  
She leaned up and staggered forward, collapsing at the end of the table. Her body would have fallen into the floor, but Fred had caught her before that happened. They put her back on the table and noticed that she had passed out.

* * *

Mimic had been transfered into Bobby's nest which had been enlarged by Lilian to occupy them both. She created a mouse hole for Mimic's dark-loving eyes to rest, and Bobby was in his normal nest outside, although he was peering in her nest most of the time to see if she was alright.  
  
She had never acted so strangely. They knew she hated cameras and lenses, even the television itself, but they never knew it would upset her so much. At least, not to the point where she'd pass out.  
  
Elizabeth knew better than that. What she had saw behind that creature's eyes had been the reason for her black out. That man, the man. Mimic knew who he was, but she wouldn't talk. Horror knew better than to try.  
  
Wanda and Elizabeth had become good friends, both sharing the love for gothic romance and dark books of Hell. Liz had gotten Wanda to start a journal, giving her a choice of the current notebooks she had. Wanda was hesitant, but she was very grateful. Her notebook overflowed with short essays about her secret passion for the sharpshooter, and random things about the prison they were being held in.  
  
Jim had toned his act down greatly since it was his fault that she had to get on tv. The Brotherhood were allowed outside, supervised of course, by Austin and Mark, who weren't up at all for babysitting, but most of the time, Elizabeth tagged along to give Wanda decent company. Bobby stayed behind with Mimic, although walking in the daylight was pretty much unheard of for him as well.  
  
Jim had figured out the code just as Bobby had and was now trying to find out what Snidva meant, having realized the strange word that Bobby had uttered the previous night was the code for the numbers on her tail. He came to the conclusion that it was a name, first name, last name, some name of someone or something, perhaps the lab she had been at. But there were no clues to who it belonged to. Mimic had never mentioned any name, and it was unlikely that it would belong to her, since the growling voice she had possessed somewhat of a Greek twang to it. There were no Snidvas in Greece. Most of their names ended with -us or -ious.  
  
Damn thing.  
  
He'd have to try and be nice from now on. Something told him that the can of worms was nothing in comparison to what was going on.

* * *

"It was a man," Lizbeth said softly, rubbing her forehead, "that looked almost exactly like her. But I couldn't imagine what that would have to do with anything."  
  
Wanda looked at the ground in confusion. Todd stopped in front of them.  
  
"So she's afraid of some dude. Is it really that surprising yo?"  
  
Elizabeth nodded. "I've never gotten a feedback from her. Usually it was just bright light."  
  
"She's afraid of bright light?"  
  
Hmm. There was a thought. Perhaps she was, but still, that wasn't the issue at hand.  
  
"Maybe, but the man was..."  
  
Wanda put her hand on Elizabeth's shoulder.  
  
"He was powerful."  
  
Pietro stopped just long enough to pay attention, then he was off again. Lance was sitting on a garbage can staring suspiciously at Austin and Mark on the building over them.  
  
"The greatest mutant on earth afraid of her own shadow, sounds like, yes?" Mark pipped.

* * *

"Mimic, please wake up."  
  
Bobby was too big to fit down the mouse hole that Lilian made for that reason, but he poked his head in there and softly talked to her. He could hear her breathing, carefully stirring in the dark. It was light out, and she would have been asleep anyway, but he wanted her to wake up, just to see if she was okay.  
  
She didn't wake, just kept on sleeping, and Bobby kept whispering words, knowing that she could have heard them if she wanted to. 


	11. What's Happening?

Chapter Eleven  
  
Elizabeth and Wanda were in their room writing and listening to some low-volume rock. Due to the sensitive ears in the base, it had to be that way. The door was closed, and the television was off. It had been that way for a few hours, and no one was complaining. Quiet was enjoyed down here.  
  
"Elizabeth, can-I-talk-to-you?"  
  
Both girls glanced at the door, and Wanda rolled her eyes. Elizabeth sighed and strolled over to the slab of wood, turning the knob and opening the door a little. Pietro stood outside, his fingers twitching and his eyes looking at the ever-so-interesting floor.  
  
"What's wrong, Pie?"  
  
He grabbed her wrists softly and pulled her into the hallway, before closing the door. Alone.  
  
"I-was-just-wondering..."  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Would-you-be-interested-in-going-with-me-out-to-dinner?"  
  
Elizabeth smiled instantly, and Pietro took the chance to glance up at her. She took his arm in hers and nodded.  
  
"Of course, Pietro," she purred.  
  
Pietro's attitude skyrocketed. "Then, shall-we-be-off?"  
  
He heard Wanda snort inside, but he had a date. Pietro didn't care.

* * *

I never really understood her, not personally, but none of us did. At the most, I understood her more than anything. Sure, I'm not booksmart like Liz, but one thing I do know is Mimic. I kinda feel sorry for her sometimes. What could she have possibly done to think that she had to protect us. I'm grateful, and all, but I'm curious.  
  
She's been sleeping for two days. I thought she died, but I could still hear her breathing. I wonder what Elizabeth saw that scared her so much. It never seemed to work before. Jim said he got her on the tv. Mimic doesn't like tv. She doesn't like being on the tv either. That's why she was so mad at Jim the other night.  
  
I've been spending the day with Lilian, playing in her forest and trying to help her garden. I'm not a really good gardener, but her garden is really pretty and tolerable of me. The plants are alive, and it's really neat. They bloom in the morning and close at night, just like real flowers, and they are so pretty.  
  
They aren't good to eat though.  
  
Todd and Fred went out with me last night. I tried to show them my favorite place to stay, but Fred couldn't make it to the top of the casino. I carried Todd up there, and we described it to him. I remember when Mimic led me up here the first time. It was before the camps, and one of the few times I had seen the sky. I really want to learn to fly. Mimic can't fly, but she can levitate herself with telekinesis. I want to fly...  
  
My wings itch so bad now, and when I scratch them, they just itch more. I want to stretch them and quench the thirst for air. I hope Mimic knows how to teach me to fly.  
  
I was meant to fly.

* * *

Of course Magneto was bent on finding the black mutant that had taken down his entire team. LeBeau gave him all the details, but he couldn't squeeze anything out of Creed. The others gave what they knew, but then again, the entire match lasted just north of five minutes.  
  
The mutant had black skin and white hair, red eyes, and was extremely agile and strong. They had learned of a mutant described as such in the data files of the Mutant Watch. Never captured. Never even shot. Never even close to capture.  
  
Then, they found a weakness.  
  
Light. The creature had been surrounded in the center of Vegas before, and movements were slower and hesitant. Theory of lack of sight in bright light.  
  
The mutant was blind in bright lights. Night was the encounter. Down a dark alley.  
  
Sounded like it fit. But how were they gonna catch this beast?  
  
Perhaps if they drew her into the light, somehow. Into Vegas at night. Of course, that would take a very organized plan. The Mutes' profiles were also in the data files, and it seemed the easiest to catch would be either the mutant known as Horror or Dragon. Or they could send Sabretooth after KO, but then there was the dust cloud..   
  
If they could catch one and bring him or her into the open, the Mimic would be at a loss.  
  
But then what?

* * *

Mimic vanished from her nest four days after she had been placed there. Bobby was in a depressed state, and no one really did much around the place. It was also found that Lance was missing as well, probably taken by the Mimic herself. He was the bridge between their parties. Hardly any of the secrets came from the others.   
  
It was very dark that night. The moon was new, and it gave no light itself. They were now on top of the construction site, the highest beam. He was paranoid and scared as hell, but there was the faith that Mimic would not let him fall to his death.  
  
"We have to relocate," she said slowly in her own tongue, making sure he got every since word. "Jim doesn't realize the danger that he's put everyone here in. It may already be too late. We have to relocate as soon as possible."  
  
"Why?" Lance said, trying to balance on the beam and walk closer to her, his arms out for balance.  
  
"Because I said so! Where did you come from?"  
  
"Illinois?"  
  
She became very frustrated. "Where did you come here from?"  
  
The ground shook, and he fell and held onto the bar, screaming.  
  
"Take us there. It is not safe for us here anymore. Take us to your home."  
  
"Mimic, I can't just do that. Mystique will kill us..."  
  
Mimic's eyes suddenly flashed, and her voice got really low. "No, Lance, I will kill you. I'll kill this Mystique. I'll kill your family. I'll make it worse than anything," she hissed, grabbing his arm tightly. "Take us there tomorrow."  
  
Lance tried to force her arm off his, but he did nothing. She released him and retreated back to the end of the beam.  
  
"Mimic, you're scaring me."  
  
She was silent for a few minutes, then her muscles relaxed, and she turned to look at him.  
  
"It is a matter of life and death. Those matters are always scary, Lance."  
  
He sat there in awe, too confused to do anything but agree to transport his group, and help the Mutes go back to Bayville. 


	12. Two

Chapter Twelve  
  
"We're leaving?" Elizabeth said after spewing her morning coffee all over the room.  
  
Jim surprisingly did not object to anything. The coffee gathered itself in a pure sphere and floated back into Liz's mug. They all looked in his general direction to see some form of harassment, but none came. Mimic shot a side glance at him, and he caught it and everything about it in that instant. If only he had not been so careless.  
  
"Why are we leaving?" Austin said, jerking himself off of his wall.  
  
"Yes, why?" Mark asked, copying what everyone else said. He really had no clue what was happening.  
  
Mimic jumped on the table and scratched her ears. "Hard to explain. Don't want to try."  
  
"Where would we live?" Bobby cried.  
  
"Where ARE we gonna live?"  
  
"With them," she answered plainly.  
  
A lot of faces in the room paled, Brotherhood included.  
  
"WHAT?"  
  
"Mystique's gonna kill us!"  
  
"What the hell is more dangerous? Mimic or Mystique!?" Lance screamed at his troop. "We will have no problem with Mystique, but there is the issue of space. Lilian...for example."  
  
Jim answered, "She'll live under your house. I'll help with that."  
  
Lilian chimed from the corner of the room. Mimic looked in her direction and nodded.  
  
"Why? To keep safe, that's why."  
  
Jim grabbed the end of her tail, and she spun around to look at him.  
  
"There's someone after you, isn't there?" he asked, his eyes almost softening. "That's the reason for the cameras. That's why you never could be put on television. There's someone looking for you. That's what Elizabeth saw. She saw the one who's looking for you."  
  
There was an odd silence in the room, and Mimic took the time to stare around at the questioning eyes in the room. She said nothing, but the silence said it all.  
  
"We leave tomorrow morning during the day. I'll stay inside Lilian for the travel time. Jim, we follow Lance's directions."  
  
The tone was nothing that anyone would argue with. Mimic talked low when she was serious or life-threatening, and there was always a hint of her own voice in that. Bobby crawled onto the table and hugged Mimic's waist.  
  
"Pack, everyone," Jim said. "We leave early."  
  
Mimic jumped off the table and headed down the hallway to Lilian's garden, sighing heavily and mumbling to herself incoherently. Jim closed his eyes and crossed his arms.  
  
"Bobby, take your two roommates and go to your room. Elizabeth, you and Wanda go to bed. Same with Lance and Pietro, Mark and Austin. Lock your rooms. Lilian, I do not want you out of your garden. No one is to leave their rooms. Lights out in ten minutes. Goodnight."  
  
He lifted himself off of the ground and floated after his advarsary.  
  
"Mimic, we need to discuss some things."  
  
She was perched in a tree, sprawled across the branch. She didn't even bother looking at him when he called to her. The room was lined with silver, glittering in the candle light. Flowers sprouted from the walls, beauties of every specie.   
  
"Not yet," she said solumnly.  
  
"We're talking, so get over it," he growled. "Who is after you?"  
  
"Figure it out."  
  
"I'm telekinetic not telepathic, Mimic! Tell me."  
  
She shook her head.  
  
"What's Snidva. Is that your name? Is that your creator's name?"  
  
She said nothing. The tree melted, and she was thrown to the floor. She put up no resistence, which was really disturbing.  
  
"Snidva was the name of a person I knew in my past," she said slowly, glancing in a manner to avoid him.  
  
Jim froze. Mimic was cooperating.  
  
"Who is after you?" he said gently.  
  
She sat up, and her ears perked. She stared blankly ahead of her, and then she closed her eyes almost painfully.  
  
"Follow me."  
  
She ran out of the garden of silver, and he hurridly followed. She left the base and went into the city, creeping up to the highest place once again on the construction site. Jim looked around and saw no one.  
  
"We're alone."  
  
It was quiet for seemingly a long time. Jim sat against the beam and watched her as she perched dangerously on the edge.  
  
She stared into the sky. "Fourteen years...," she said dreamily. "It's been fourteen years, hasn't it?"  
  
They weren't alone. They had been followed since they had left the base.  
  
"Fourteen years, yes," the voice said deeply.  
  
Jim looked down and saw something almost invisible on the beam below them. The only thing he could see was the long, white hair falling down a lean back.  
  
"You're more talented than they give you credit," the beast said.  
  
Mimic looked down at the man below her. "They underestimated both of us in the beginning, right?"  
  
He nodded. Jim tried to stay as quiet as possible when the black man crawled on the same beam, behind Mimic. She turned around and stared. Jim picked up a number on the side of his tail.  
  
912121121145  
  
"You had a twin?"  
  
Both of them ignored him and embraced softly, but it was awkward.  
  
"You won't find us after tonight," she said simply.  
  
"I found you here."  
  
"You found us here, but only because of his folly."  
  
The man laughed and nodded. "Stupid kid."  
  
The man turned around to face Jim. He had the same red eyes. Practically identical to Mimic except for form and build. He had thicker, more animal-like legs, and his tail looked thick like Bobby's. He wore an almost mocking smirk on his face when he looked at the inferior mutant.  
  
"Yeah, stupid kid," he repeated.  
  
Mimic sighed. "He's not so bad."  
  
The man smiled. "Yeah, right."  
  
The sarcasm dripped off this man. Mimic looked into the city and jumped between her brother and Jim.  
  
"We're off. See you in another fourteen years," she said, patting him on the shoulder.  
  
"Oh, don't worry," he said. "I'll find you before then."  
  
Mimic jumped off the building's skeleton and was gone, her tail wrapped around Jim's leg as he flew with her. 


	13. Welcome or Not

Chapter 13  
  
When they got back to the base, out of respect, Mimic knew, her brother had not followed them back. He knew where they were anyway, so why return? She retired to the garden, a place that held the possible potential of her day home. She'd just mold a tree around herself, giving a small airhole in a place where the light wouldn't bother her. She had often done the same thing with Lilian during the day, melting inside of her for however long. Lilian didn't mind, she could hold so much on her back that Mimic wasn't anything.  
  
Needless to say, she was not up for much talking for the rest of the morning. Everyone was in their rooms like Jim had instructed, and she retired to the garden where Lilian was already sleeping. Mimic's movements were too soft to wake the great Sheen, the quiet and elegant monster in the corner of the room, lying amongst silver roses and irises. Such a taste for beauty this creature had.  
  
Mimic melted into the tree in the corner of the room, taking a long glance at the surrounding area.  
  
Fourteen years of hiding from cameras, at least here. She had known the cameras since her birth, the eyes in the corners of the room. Her brother knew them too. Neither liked them.  
  
Night faded into light a few hours later, and then it was time to leave. Mimic was stowed inside Lilian much like she was stowed inside the tree. Everything was packed and compressed into pocket-sized objects. Mark did his best to camouflage them, but his blackish-purple mist did little until they were above the clouds. Jim kept the outer pressure out, and they followed the bus that took the Brotherhood back to Bayville.  
  
No one spoke during the entire trip, not even Mark or Bobby. Jim's attitude had gained an almost revered silence out of them. It was not very often that both the leaders agreed on something, but then again, seriousness was something they'd always agree with.  
  
It was a long trip, longer than it would have been at night. But, Mimic's brother would not follow them in light. He, too, hated light with an intimate passion.  
  
It was night when they arrived. Lilian had started complaining because Mimic was moving around.  
  
The jeep stopped, and the headlights turned off. The Brotherhood snuck out of the vehicle, making their way towards the door. The door opened, and the sillouette of a woman appeared in the doorway. Everyone except Wanda froze.  
  
"What are you doing back early? Did you even go to Vegas like I told you?!"  
  
The boys cringed. "Yeah, we went, and I didn't know you sent the Acolytes after us, bitch! Get outta my way!" Wanda shrieked. Mystique growled as Wanda walked by, and then the goth looked and grinned. "Oh yeah. We have guests."  
  
Mystique glared at the boys as they walked into the door. "Guests? What do you mean you have guests? Pietro, there will be no girls over!"  
  
Jim was the first to land. Mystique snarled at him.  
  
"Who the hell are you?"  
  
And then Mimic hit the ground, followed by the rest. Mimic bounded forward and stood up a few inches away, striking Mystique into a frozen shock. One touch of her tail, and Mystique was looking at herself.  
  
"What do you give it?" Pietro said in his room, with Lance leaning against the door.   
  
"3...2...1..."  
  
"AAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
"Yeah. There you go."  
  
Mystique appeared in the doorway. "WHO THE HELL ARE THESE PEOPLE!?"  
  
"The Mutes," was all Pietro said.  
  
Well, Mystique knew who the Mutes were, having had Magneto talk about the only mutants more powerful than the Acolytes. Mystique went as pale as a blue woman could get.  
  
"Oh shit."  
  
Five minutes later, the Mutes had begun clearing out a basement, and Lizbeth and Austin were whipping up something in the kitchen with their food supplies. Jim had a beautiful degree in architecture, so he knew where pillars should be and where they shouldn't. It was a breeze after that. So, by four in the morning, the Brotherhood boarding house had a very large basement, complete with rooms for everyone, even Mimic, who had tunneled herself even deeper underground.  
  
Mystique had known about the main body of the Mutes, but Mimic she had never known about. The black creature was constantly staring at her in a very mocking manner, like finding out that a bully didn't hit very hard. She grinned every moment she could.  
  
The lady leader called Magneto the next morning when she was sure everyone else was sleeping.  
  
"Yeah, the Mutes are in the boarding house! What did you do, command them to come here or something?!"  
  
"I will be there shortly. The black creature they call Mimic, make sure she does not go anywhere without your knowing. If she does, keep the little boy close by. We have to capture that woman!"  
  
"Why is she so special?"  
  
"That may be the most powerful mutant ever known to man."  
  
"Apocolypse?"  
  
"Cheesecake compared to her."  
  
"I don't want her here. Hurry up, Eric."  
  
"Do as I say and we will be there shortly."  
  
"Agreed."  
  
It took the Acolytes three days to plan their attack. They couldn't blow the place up, and they had lots of dangerous mutants to worry about. Their means of victory?  
  
Tranquilizers.  
  
Each man wore three guns with six darts in each, filled with the closest non-lethal dose they could muster. It was on a shoot first ask questions later scale. Everyone would be put down, excluding Mystique, but if she got in the way...well, too bad.  
  
The main target was the Mimic. Insomnia would have to be shot down first, to avoid certain death. Then KO would need to be taken down. They'd have to get Mimic then, avoiding the dust cloud called Puck. The Dragon and Horror would be easy to take down, and Magneto could tangle with Sheen.  
  
They'd have to come in just at dawn. By then, everyone would be asleep, and, hopefully, the Mimic would be blinded by the light. It would be easy if they could drag her outside. Ah, well, that would be a good idea. It seemed the one the creature was tied to was the little boy.  
  
Interesting.  
  
So perhaps the crybaby would be of more use than they anticipated, but they would have to work fast.  
  
This was the most powerful mutant in the world, after all.  
  
"Magneto, if this woman is so powerful, how can we be so sure that tranquilizers will work?" Piotr asked, staring at his guns. "I'm not even a good shot."  
  
"Guns are for whips," Sabretooth growled.  
  
Remy LeBeau looked at the guns at his belt. "So we have to use guns? Ah, well, Remy at least good at pickin' targets."  
  
"Guns...total turnoff," John whined from the corner. "Why can't we just burn everythin'?"  
  
"If you burn anything, you get to live with Mystique for three weeks afterwards," Magneto answered.  
  
John immediately curled into the fetal position and began to spasm.  
  
Remy looked at the floor in complete boredom. "Dis better be worth it. Remy doesn't like de sound of dis at all."  
  
"Be careful, men. We have one chance at this. Sabretooth, get the boy as soon as you can and drag him outside. We get this creature outside, and she's at a loss."  
  
"I hope she notices..."  
  
"She will..." 


	14. How to Catch Invincibility

Chapter 14  
  
Bobby bounded into the kitchen and snatched his usual box of cereal. Mystique was in the corner and immediately ordered him into the floor. He continued to make his normal mess and vacuumed it up afterwards. Although this was normal behavior, it happened in less than two minutes.  
  
"What's your hurry?" Austin said from his corner.  
  
"Mimic's gonna teach me how to fly!"  
  
Elizabeth's coffee was all over the table. She coughed on what had slid into her lungs.  
  
"WHAT?!"  
  
Bobby's smile widened tenfold. "I know! Isn't it great!?"  
  
Mark laughed. "Mimic be teachin' the baby Dragon to fly now, is she?"  
  
"Yeah! Today! Now!"  
  
He bounded out of the kitchen and into the backyard. Everyone in the kitchen scrambled out to see.  
  
Mimic was hanging upside down in a tree, waiting for Bobby to join her in the after sunset glow. He crawled up the tree and dangled down by his tail. For a few seconds, nothing happened.   
  
"According to my research, the mother dragon keeps the egg in high temperatures until it hatches. Usually by that time, the wings are small and can't be used. The mom keeps the baby in fire for a while, and that speeds up the growth of the wings."  
  
"So I have to sleep in the fireplace for a few days?"  
  
"Well, yeah, but they don't have a fireplace. I'll just have to make one or breathe fire on you for a few days."  
  
"Hmm..."  
  
She crawled out of the tree. "Jim, come here for a sec."  
  
She spat some of Toad's green goop on the window in the attic, and Jim opened it. "What the hell? What do you want?!"  
  
"I need you to help me make a fireplace. We have to cook Bobby."  
  
Little Dragon cringed. "I don't want to be cooked."  
  
"It's a figure of speech, hun."  
  
"An oven? For what?"  
  
"He has to learn to fly."  
  
"Hmm..."  
  
Of course, Jim helped. For one, if Bobby could fly, he wouldn't have to watch him all the time. Secondly, less for him to carry. So the oven was made, and it was made where it would burn constantly, with Bobby curled up in the middle. It looked like a kiln, but Dragon could crawl in and out. He would sleep out there during the day, and it would be ventilated so he wouldn't suffocate. Fire didn't bother Bobby. In truth, it never made it past his scales.  
  
Bobby went to bed early in his new room.  
  
"Thanks," Mimic said, staring up at the stars.  
  
"For what?" Jim replied. "Making Bobby's oven?"  
  
"Don't tell them about Mimic."  
  
He leaned his head to look at her. "Your brother's called Mimic too?"  
  
She nodded. "Don't tell them about him. Not yet."  
  
"Okay, but why not? Why are you running from him?"  
  
She sighed and looked up again. "We're on opposite sides of the fight, you know, the eternal stereotype of good and evil."  
  
"Didn't seem like it."  
  
"How would you feel if you hadn't seen your counterpart in fourteen years?"  
  
"Probably miss him, or...bring a shotgun."  
  
"Yeah, whatever."  
  
"Fourteen years? That's a distance. How old are you?"  
  
Mimic burst out laughing. "You know the rules, Jim. You know nothing about me other than I have a brother, and I was in a laboratory."  
  
"Tell me more, Mimic."  
  
"I tell you nothing more. There's nothing more that I can remember."  
  
"Oh shut up. You sound like a poor pathetic, long lost hero in some anime series."  
  
Mimic chuckled. "No, it's not like that."  
  
"Tell me what it's like."  
  
"I can't remember any of it, Jim. I really can't. After coming here, that information became irrelevant. I forgot it."  
  
"That's believeable."  
  
Mimic stretched and jumped off the roof. "There's one enigma about this place I don't understand."  
  
Jim flew into his window. "What's that?"  
  
"Why are Lance and his friends afraid of the woman?"  
  
Jim just shrugged. "No one knows."  
  
"MIMIC! MIMIC! JIM! SOMEONE, HELP!"  
  
Instantly, the screams stopped. Mimic and the Mutes were up, panicking. Mimic and Jim rushed upstairs, and Mimic crawled along the ceiling to avoid the majority of the light. She crawled upstairs and found Lance sprawled in the doorway, a dart protruding from his side. Wanda was found in somewhat the same way, in the floor on the other side of the bed. Todd was still in his bed, and Fred had been put to sleep with fluid. Pietro was down for the count also.  
  
Mimic crawled downstairs.  
  
"JIM!"  
  
Gambit fired a dart into Jim's back as he looked at his partner. His eyes rolled back into his head, and he sank to his knees before collapsing. Mimic was on Gambit in an instant, hurling his body into a wall and wrapping her hands around his neck, lifting him off the floor. The gun was still in his hand, but she didn't seem to notice. Remy Lebeau was focusing on trying to breathe at the moment.  
  
"You messed with Lance and didn't learn your lesson, fool. You don't get another chance..."  
  
Remy realized he had a gun and fired at her side. Mimic, instead of squeezing harder, snapped her head to the side to see Colossus with his gun aimed. Gambit was instantly hurled through the air. Horror and Austin flew up the stairs, and upon closer hearing, Lilian was outside. Elizabeth hit the ground instantly, and Austin was taken by surprise by Sabretooth sneaking up on him. Pyro was in the basement with a vacuum cleaner wrecking havoc with Puck.  
  
Mimic pulled a second dart out of her side, along with the first. "Oh, boy. You guys are stupid," she laughed evilly, her eyes blooding over. "You can't kill me with these!"  
  
Suddenly, Jim's body began to twitch, and his eyes snapped open, fading to white clouds. Everything in the room began to shake and lift, including the people. Mimic slammed into the men at almost full speed, springing off the wall and sending them flying through the side of the house.   
  
She stopped as soon as she found herself in light.  
  
"Bobby!"  
  
She froze, and heard Lilian's chiming.  
  
"Lilian! Where's Bobby! Is he still safe?" she cried.  
  
There was a yes.  
  
The theories had been correct. Mimic's eyes contracted so much that no light was allowed through, rendering her blind. Her ears stretched out, and she sank low to the ground. This was not the first time. The cat man was across from her. Lilian was fighting the man she took to be Magneto.  
  
Mimic heard guns being cocked. "Shoot me. No matter how much of that you put in my body, I will never go down! SHOOT ME!"  
  
Pyro fired a few rounds into her, and she pulled them out. Suddenly, Mimic stood bolt upright, and her body went rigid. She slowly staggered over to them, and fell to the ground on her back, coughing.  
  
"Thanks, Dave," she whispered, grinning her evil grin.  
  
Mimic suddenly exploded in a fiery blast that would be seen for miles. 


	15. The Acolytes Come Tumbling Down

Chapter 15  
  
"Bobby!"  
  
The kiln had been destroyed, but Mimic had managed to get her blast far enough from the house not to damage it more than it already was. Bobby was sprawled on the ground, unconscious from the shockwave. Lilian was lying nearby on her side, but she was trying to stand. Mimic crawled over to Bobby's naked body and picked him up, his hot scales burning her skin. The burns healed over almost instantly.   
  
"Lilian, inside!"  
  
"Aaaaiiiinnnngggg...?" (And you're telling me this why?)  
  
The creature slinked inside, and Mimic hurried Bobby into the darker environment. Mimic sealed and fixed the walls. The room was in disarray, and Jim was cut up badly from the flying debris. He seemed to be fine, but they had too many people knocked out to feel safe. Mimic at once fled to a dark place to gain some sight back, and Lilian crept over to Jim's body.  
  
Spines stretched into tentacles wove around the bodies in the room. Lilian went downstairs with Jim and the others, probably putting them in their beds. The dosage wasn't enough to kill. Mimic knew that just from the first dart she had. Damn demon eyes.  
  
Mimic spent a few moments in the floor regenerating after the blast. Lilian returned from downstairs and went upstairs to fix the Brotherhood. Then she came and sat behind Mimic, ringing as usual.  
  
"How...did they find us? No one followed us. Bobby had better be okay or I will personally hunt them down and impale their heads on a fencepost."  
  
There was a silence for a while, and then the silver creature spoke again."  
  
"Iiiiinnnga eeeieeennnn?" (Do you like Bobby?)  
  
"Of course I like Bobby. He's a sweetheart."  
  
"Rrrrrrreeeee!" (No, do you LIKE him!"  
  
"Oh, that like. I don't know. He's too young."  
  
Lilian laughed. "Spreeeee irrrrring." (We're all too young.)  
  
"Yeah, true. Go outside and bring the men inside. If someone starts investigating, I don't want them to be found. I want to scare a few once they come to, too. Give me their guns. Hopefully no one can see the burn marks on the ground."  
  
Lilian nodded in response and went outside for a few minutes. The guns were hovered inside, and Mimic took the darts out of them. The Acolytes were tied up, even Magneto, who Lilian was lying around. Mimic went downstairs and found a few of Jim's syringes, pouring the tranquilizer into the larger tube.  
  
"I have to give them credit for trying. Three guns per guy. Tranquilizer like this isn't gonna take me down."  
  
"Squeeeeeeeeee." (Well, you've had enough of it pumped into you. I can see why.)  
  
"Jim seems unusually curious about me now. Isn't that funny?"  
  
"Rreeeeee." (You let him meet your brother. That probably triggered something.)  
  
"So I let him meet Mimic. He knows about the number."  
  
"Ggggrrrrrr. Innngggg." (Does he know you're older than he is?)  
  
"No. He doesn't know anything else."  
  
"Iiinng rrrrrr..." (I think Jim likes you.)  
  
Mimic suddenly started laughing. "WHAT? Yeah, whatever. He hates me, remember? Plus, there isn't a spark anywhere with anybody for me. I am solo for eternity..."  
  
"Eeeeeeeeeee preeeeeeeeeee..." (You are so dramatical...)  
  
Mimic laughed again and fell over. "I'm glad I got Meow Mix's power. That really came in handy."  
  
As if on cue, Sabretooth woke, straining against his bonds. Lilian laughed, and Mimic sat up.  
  
"Those chains are controlled by my metalkinetic friend here. You'll wear yourself out again, so I suggest you reserve your strength. You're going to need it later, big boy."  
  
He growled and glared at her. "Bitch, I'll kill you!"  
  
Mimic crawled over to him holding the syringes. "See this?" she said waving it in front of his face. "I was injected with this every day for eighteen years, each dose getting larger and larger. You came prepared, but it wasn't enough. I'm immune to this kind of tranquilizer."  
  
"Have to get some stronger than..."  
  
She grinned. "You couldn't carry enough of the right tranquilizer to take me out, honey, so I suggest you don't even try."  
  
"Wait till I get out of here, you stupid beast! I'll kill you!"  
  
Mimic rolled her eyes and darted forward. She grabbed Victor's throat and squeezed.  
  
"You're an intelligent creature. I'm not gonna kill you now, but leave these people alone or I just might. I'm dangerous, and I've killed more people in one year than you have in your lifetime."  
  
Her eyes flashed dangerously, and Sabretooth could only glare in her general direction. Someone knocked on the door. Mimic was there instantly.  
  
"It's a little girl."  
  
"Hey, Lance! Like are you home?"  
  
Silence. "You're jeep's here! Like open the door!"  
  
Mimic morphed into Lance Alvers and cautiously opened the door. She instantly hugged "him."  
  
"Oh, Lance! I thought you would have been back earlier! How was your trip?"  
  
"It...was very different. I want you to meet some people."  
  
Kitty looked inside and saw Sabretooth and the others tied up. Sabretooth snorted.  
  
"LIKE OH MY GOD! LANCE! DID YOU GUYS LIKE FINALLY TAKE OUT THE ACOLYTES! OH MY GOD!"  
  
"Kitty?"  
  
Thank God the tranquilizer only lasted for about two hours. The real Lance stumbled down the stairs. Kitty waved at him, but then she realized that there weren't two Lances, nor did Lance have a twin. Mimic transformed back and caught her as she passed out. Lance looked accusingly at her.  
  
"She knocked on the door wanting you. I was afraid to just leave her out there. She might have drawn more attention."  
  
Lance picked Kitty up and put her on the couch. He then looked in shock at the Acolytes.  
  
"Mimic, you...all by yourself?"  
  
"No, Lilian fought too. Man, what's the deal with these guys? I thought you were afraid of them."  
  
"Well, we are."  
  
Mimic snorted. "Pansies. God, Magneto sure could use some help. I'll have to get Lilian to teach him some tricks if we're ever on the same side.  
  
Lance looked at Sabretooth. "Morning, buddy."  
  
He growled in response.  
  
"They came in here with tranquilizer," Mimic said.  
  
"Ah, well, that's fun," Lance said, returning from the kitchen with a wet washcloth.  
  
"I didn't mean to scare your friend..." Mimic apologized.  
  
Lance shruged. "She's a tough one. She'll be okay."  
  
"What's her name?"  
  
"Kitty."  
  
"How nice."  
  
About that time, the Brotherhood came sauntering down the stairs groaning. Mimic had to stop Wanda from hexing the Acolytes. Kitty came to as well.  
  
"OH MY GOD! LANCE! WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE!?"  
  
Mimic crouched down at the loud noise. "ACK!"  
  
"Kitty, calm down. They are friends."  
  
The terrified girl looked at Mimic and at Lilian, then at the Brotherhood and Acolytes.  
  
"Lance...?"  
  
"We're called the Mutes," Jim said as he floated up the stairway. "We're the world's strongest mutant terrorist gang."  
  
Kitty squealed, and Lance hugged her. "Stop it, Jim. You're scaring her."  
  
Jim laughed. "The two most dangerous groups in the same room. How interesting."  
  
The telekinetic focused on the bodies at the far end of the room and suddenly, they all came to. Magneto couldn't remove his bonds, but he had two mutants holding him down.  
  
"Well, so this is the fabled Mimic, is it?"  
  
Mimic bowed. "You know, sir, your team is really pathetic."  
  
The old man nodded his head. "Against you, who wouldn't be?"  
  
She bowed again. "Still, I'd appreciate something more than this."  
  
She drew the three syringes out of their hiding place. "Those darts you had fit in these."  
  
She squirted the air out of them and jabbed all the syringes in her arm, taking out empty canisters. She stood there, and with a few gasps, everyone waited.  
  
Nothing happened.  
  
"This tranquilizer...cake. Nothing to me anymore. Most of my blood consists of it. Nice try though, Magneto. And as for the outside battle. I am blind outside, but you dumb mutant, I've got ears. You aren't the first to try that."  
  
Eventually, the Acolytes were freed, and they went their own way, leaving everyone to ponder about anything they felt necessary. 


	16. Who I Am

Chapter Sixteen  
  
Everything went fine for a few days. Kitty came and went, and no others came into the boarding house. One night, when the discussion was Mimic and her past, the word Cerebro came up. No one expected Mimic to know what that was or that she was in the same room, but she did. In fact, she became very interested in the subject, and she had the most interesting proposal.  
  
"Information for information! Tell me where Cerebro is, and I answer your questions!"  
  
Mimic was on the table, and everyone was chittering over which question to ask her. Kitty wasn't that willing to give up the location, however. Mimic growled in frustration and retreated to a corner.  
  
"What's your connection to Cerebro?"  
  
Well, what could Mimic do? She wanted one simple answer, and she was willing to do just about anything to get it.  
  
"He was my creator," she said softly.  
  
Everyone went silent and stared at her. Kitty stood up. "But...that's impossible. Cerebro like can't create living beings."  
  
Mimic laughed dumbfoundedly and shook her head. "So the cat's out of the bag. Not in your generation he can't."  
  
Jim sat on the counter next to her. "So what time are you from then?"  
  
Mimic's look demanded an explanation, so Jim continued.  
  
"You haven't seen your brother in fourteen years, and you haven't changed one bit ever since you joined us. How old are you?"  
  
She sighed. "We were created in the year 4263, and we were sent back here in the year 4932. You do the math."  
  
Jim nodded his head. "That doesn't surprise me. So what does Snidva mean?"  
  
Mimic shrugged. "I can't remember what that means. It was used rarely during my life, in the laboratory. I never remembered anything after it."  
  
"We?"  
  
"My twin brother and I. The reason we had to move is because he found us via television. He found me." Mimic held out her hands and interlocked her fingers. "We were part of something called the Chaos Three. We were sent back in time to this era in order to be used somehow by whom I can't recall. When we completed the time jump, myself, and the now deceased Element, had a change of heart. See, we used to be...the most dangerous weapon known in the history of man. The atomic bomb causes too much noise, supposedly, in the future. We were evil. When we came here, we lost our memories for a short while, gaining them after my brother came for us. He killed Element, who had resided for a while in Kentucky."  
  
"Did he try to kill you?"  
  
She shook her head. "He can't kill me. We are part of each other. I know what he's going to do. He knows what I'm going to do. Attacking each other would prove...nothing. But we are siblings, and we do care for each other. When I knew Element was dead, I left my adopted family in Florida and went to Vegas."  
  
"Weapons? Time travel? How did you come here?"  
  
"My most common power is the mimicing ability. Then, there's the power of moving forward or backward in time. However, I am not eager to get caught by my brother. If he sends for reinforcement to capture me, they will bring the tranqilizer that brings me down, to be discovered in this world in 3052. Developed a tolerance against that too, takes a lot of it to knock me out, but I'm not immune to that."  
  
"Why do you want to get to Cerebro?"  
  
"To destroy it," she said, staring at Kitty. "It's evil. It sent us here for some reason, but it was nothing but world domination."  
  
"Well, if you destroy it, won't you destroy yourself?"  
  
She nodded. "I have thought about that, but I have yet to find a way to save myself."  
  
"What if we found your brother again. What if you went with him. He would know the people who wanted to use you as weapons wouldn't he?"  
  
Mimic shruged. "You want to put the world on line. If I fall to this mind control, the world will most likely be destroyed."  
  
"What makes you so sure?"  
  
She laughed. "You don't send an assassin to do a gardener's job. I was a weapon, am a weapon, and will always be a weapon. Weapons are meant to be used. If they get me in their custody, the world is theirs, and people will have a reason to fear mutants."  
  
Bobby strolled into the room, yawning. "Hey, guys."  
  
He had been overly tired that evening, and a nap was in order. His wings had gotten a great deal larger. He could parachute down from high places, but they weren't large or strong enough to lift him off the ground.  
  
Mimic nodded and jumped off the counter. "I will find a way to stay here, but Cerebro must be destroyed," she said simply, walking out of the kitchen.  
  
Bobby shrugged and followed. Jim rubbed his hair and sighed.  
  
"I knew she wasn't from this time. There were too many hints. I doubt she's even human."  
  
"What should we do?" Kitty asked. "I don't want her to tear our house up!"  
  
"Mimic's too professional to do that," Jim said, staring into the floor. "She would be in and out and there wouldn't be anybody there that would even notice."  
  
"Mr. Logan would. The Professor too."  
  
Jim looked up at her and wrinkled his forehead. "Nothing compared to the Mimic."  
  
"I doubt she'd do it now," Lance said from his corner. "She wouldn't want to kill herself and leave us hanging. That's just not her."  
  
"What would you know, Alvers?" Jim hissed. "You've just been here for a little under half a year."  
  
"Yeah but I talked to her more than you ever did when she was still dormant."  
  
"I had a lot of catching up time to do."  
  
The house began to shake a little, but it wasn't the normal Lance earthquake. Jim's eyes narrowed.  
  
"Remember, little boy, I can kill you with a wave of my hand."  
  
"Stop it!" Kitty yelled.  
  
Elizabeth stood up and so did Austin. "Look, we really don't have the space to be fighting like this. If you two want to go at it, leave."  
  
Neither Lance nor Jim moved.  
  
"The cable's out!" Todd yelled from the livingroom.  
  
Jim rolled his eyes and walked to the nearest window. "Lilian, quit messing around with the wires! Fix the damn tv and be done with it!"  
  
Mimic searched and researched the area that night. It was about five in the morning when she found the mansion that Cerebro was hidden under. She didn't follow Kitty home; she had been on the other side of town when Kitty left. Bobby had tagged along with her for no reason. She was perched in a tree, with Bobby trying to keep his wings under control and balance at the same time.  
  
"There's a lot of mutants here. This is it. I can smell Kitty inside too."  
  
Bobby nodded and took a long whiff of the air. "Yeah. Smell...oh...leftover pizza..."  
  
"No pizza now. Stay here. I have to find it. At least find it!"  
  
She began to move, but Bobby grabbed her tail. "Be careful and bring back pizza if you can."  
  
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, Bobby. Sure."  
  
She flew over the yard and landed on one of the balconies. It was now seven o'clock. Inside, there was a boy in his bed. He didn't move when she opened the door, but his tail began to twitch as she soon saw. She was crawling across the floor slowly, heading towards the door. Upon the first turn of the knob, it was locked.  
  
She sat on her legs and waited for a few minutes, staring at the sleeping mutant. She slid her tail in his direction and moved closer, touching the end of his tail. There was a surge of energy, and she knocked hard against the floor. She froze, her eyes wide.  
  
The boy rolled over, however, and didn't awaken. Mimic searched through his power and smiled. Then she went back to tackle the door. She unlocked it quietly, then turned the knob. There was a small, sharp squeak when she opened the door, but she bounded out of it before he could wake up. She was in a hallway, with doors lining the wall. The sun was beginning to come up, and Mimic tried her hardest to keep in the shadows, but the light was already starting to affect her sight.  
  
There were footsteps ahead of her, coming closer and trying to be silent. She ducked into another room. This door thankfully had no squeak. There was another boy in here, an older one. He was sleeping as well, and she found the strangest pair of goggles on his nightstand. There was a pool outside, so she just figured he liked to swim. The footsteps stopped moving, but there was someone standing outside the door.  
  
Mimic left the room through the window and scaled the walls until she got to another window close by. There was a woman in it this time with reddish hair. This one woke up.  
  
It was dark in this room, thankfully, and Mimic was hiding in the darkest shadow of all, ducking her head so her hair wouldn't be seen. The girl knew something was wrong.  
  
"Who's there?"  
  
Mimic didn't move, but she felt a sharp pain in her head, just behind her eyes. It began to grow, and she moved. The girl looked at her immediately and tried to scream. Mimic closed her mouth with her telekinesis and put her back in bed, facing away from the door. She opened the door again and walked out of the room, first checking both ways to see if the man had gone.  
  
There were a lot of mutants here. Mimic began to feel a disturbing aura around her, then there was another sharp pain in her head, this one much, much stronger. She fell to her side and cried out, holding her head.  
  
Telepathy. She didn't have that nor did she have protection from it.  
  
The man that had heard her was on her in an instant. Mimic screamed, amplifying it until the glass shattered and the man released her. The pain stopped, but all the sleeping people were now in the hallway. Mimic backed against the wall and growled. The boy with a tail came out and stared at her with a strange emotion in his face. It wasn't fear or shock. It was more like awe. Kitty sprawled out of her room and rushed forward.  
  
"Mimic! What are you doing here!?"  
  
Mimic growled at her and climbed onto the wall.  
  
"Mimic?"  
  
"Keety, you know zat zing?"  
  
"Scott, blast it!" Logan growled.  
  
Scott let loose a smaller blast, but it didn't reach her. It bounced off of her shield and spun elsewhere. A woman with white hair came into the hallway, as well as a man in a wheelchair.  
  
"Don't hurt her, Mr. Logan!"  
  
"Kitty, you know this creature?"  
  
"Yes, she won't hurt us if we don't hurt her. Mimic!"  
  
The thin line of sunlight was scraping over the floor. She slid to the ground and rubbed her head.  
  
"Mmmm..." she groaned, looking at Kitty.  
  
Jean was suddenly pushed against a wall, as were the others. Mimic crawled past them and stopped at the line of light. She crashed through the window and flew off, breathing harder than normal. 


	17. Please Don't Die

Chapter 17  
  
"Mimic?"  
  
"Why isn't she waking up?"  
  
"MIMIC?"  
  
"She's not dead is she?"  
  
"No, of course not. Mimic, wake up!"  
  
"Go get some water, Toad!"  
  
"Yes, snufflekins."  
  
"Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrnnnnnnnnnnnnn!!"  
  
"Lilian, we can't understand you, remember?"  
  
"Why isn't she waking up?"  
  
"Get some water!"  
  
"I'm coming, I'm coming!"  
  
"Dammit, Todd! Hurry the fuck up!"  
  
"I don't think she's breathing!"  
  
"She's not breathing!"  
  
"She's still got a pulse!"  
  
"TODD!"  
  
Mimic was found the next night trying to crawl out of the basement. Her body was sprawled on the dirt stairs, and she was very cold. She was in the livingroom now, her head in Wanda's lap. Jim was next to her splashing water on her face. Everyone else was surrounding her, other than Bobby who was on the floor in the corner starting off into space, emotionally dead.  
  
"She's still not breathing!"  
  
"FUCK! MIMIC, DON'T YOU DARE DIE!"  
  
"Jim, her tongue! Don't let her swallow it!"  
  
"She's not breathing!"  
  
"Kitty, is there someone you know that can help!?"  
  
"Yes, I'll be back. Lance, come on!"  
  
"HURRY!"  
  
The door closed, and Lance started his jeep. There was a screech as it swirved out of the driveway, and the engine roared as it came to life.  
  
"Someone, get Bobby some water. Revive him now!"  
  
"Bobby, come on, buddy. Wake up. Todd, water!"  
  
"Bobby, come on..."  
  
"MIMIC!"  
  
"NO PULSE!"  
  
"MIMIC!"  
  
"CPR! SOMEONE HURRY!"  
  
"MIMIC!"  
  
"No!!!" Bobby shrieked. "SNIDVA!!! MIMIC, DON'T DIE!!! SNIDVA!"  
  
"SNIDVA! SHE'S GOING UNDER! THERE'S TOO MUCH TRANQUILIZER! GET ILLKUNE IN HERE NOW!"  
  
"GET ILLKUNE!"  
  
"SNIDVA!"  
  
"GET SOMETHING TO DILUTE IT! GET THE ORANGE VILE! ORANGE! HURRY! GET THE NEEDLE INTO HER ARM!"  
  
"DAMMIT! WE'RE LOSING HER! FLATLINE!"  
  
"NO! CPR! DO SOMETHING! WE CAN'T LOSE HER!"  
  
"HURRY!"  
  
"IT'S IN! IT'S PUMPING! SHE'S STILL FLATLINING!"  
  
"ILLKUNE! HELP HER!"  
  
"Aaaaccckk..."  
  
"ILLKUNE!"  
  
"RRrrrrrrr...."  
  
Silence...  
  
click click  
  
Silence...  
  
squeal  
  
Silence...  
  
growl click  
  
Silence...  
  
click cough click  
  
"We have a pulse!"  
  
"She's breathing!"  
  
click click cough  
  
"Illkune, thank god..."  
  
click  
  
click squeal  
  
"She's breathing...oh god."  
  
"DAMN YOU, ANGUS! YOU GAVE HER TOO MUCH! YOU'RE FIRED! GET OUT OF HERE!"  
  
"I GAVE HER THE SPECIFIED AMOUNT! I DIDN'T OVERDOSE IT!"  
  
"He's telling the truth, Morgan. I don't think it was the tranquilizer that did it. He didn't overdose it."  
  
"Then what?"  
  
"Sickness?"  
  
"Sickness?"  
  
"Illkune's been with us doing biological weapon research for seven months. We came back yesterday morning, and let them mingle for a while. She misses him."  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"She's going through withdrawal again. It happened right before the Caas Accident remember?"  
  
"Oh, that was what that was?"  
  
"It's like homesickness. She misses Illkune."  
  
"SNIDVA!!!"  
  
"SHE'S STILL NOT BREATHING!"  
  
"PULSE!"  
  
"SHE HAS A PULSE! WAY TO GO, LIZ!"  
  
"She's not breathing..."  
  
The door burst open and more people entered the room. Ororo rushed forward and checked for a pulse. Xavier came forward and put his hands on the side of her head.  
  
"It's a memory..." he said after a few minutes. "She's reliving a memory. I must have pulled it out this morning..."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Who's Illkune?"  
  
"We don't know!"  
  
"Who's Snidva?"  
  
"WE DON'T KNOW!"  
  
There was silence for a while, then she slowly started breathing again, but she didn't wake up. Xavier rubbed his head.   
  
"There are many painful memories here. She's very vulnerable to mental attacks. I guess the one this morning removed the barrier from this memory. She's...in a trance or something."  
  
"This morning?"  
  
"Like, yeah. She came to the mansion this morning."  
  
"Who fucking cares!? How do we wake her up?"  
  
"I don't think we can..." Charles said slowly. "She's in a coma. We have to find Illkune. Whoever that is, he is the only one that can bring her out of this."  
  
Bobby jumped on the ceiling and touched her hand with his tail.  
  
"Snidva...is her real name...," Bobby whispered, sliding onto the couch. He carefully took her hand. "Illkune is her twin. He's the other Mimic." 


	18. Taken Away

Chapter 18  
  
"We have to go back to Vegas," Jim said. "That or find a way to make a national broadcast."  
  
"RIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!"  
  
"Something to that nature..."  
  
"Rrrrnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnggggaaa."  
  
"Lilian, write it down."  
  
He leaned against the wall and watched as they lifted her body and took it downstairs. Bobby sat on the couch and looked at the floor. Mostly everyone was downstairs, making sure the mutant was still okay. Jim looked at Bobby, and Bobby looked at Jim.  
  
"How did you know that was her name?"  
  
Bobby shrugged. "I don't know. I just know."  
  
Jim rubbed his head. "We have to get on the news. God, get a damn phonebook. We're getting on CNN or something! A radio. Anything!"  
  
Bobby sat quietly on the sofa, looking at the floor. Charles Xavier came into the room from the kitchen and parked next to Bobby.  
  
"I couldn't pick up your friend with Cerebro."  
  
Jim shrugged. "So? That's not really surprising."  
  
"I can pick up the signals of every mutant on the planet with Cerebro," Charles said firmly. "I don't think she's a mutant."  
  
"Oh yeah. She's human. So what about the obviously black skin, white hair, red eyes, and oh yeah, THE TAIL?" Jim hissed.  
  
"Don't talk to me like that. I'm not suggesting she's human. I don't think she's either."  
  
"A space alien?" Bobby said, turning his head.  
  
"Oh that's even more bogus than her as a human. God, you're no help. Just leave."  
  
"Look, young man. I don't know who you are or where you're from, but I demand some respect!"  
  
"I am Jim Winde. I was born in LAS FUCKING VEGAS. I AM THE FOUNDER OF THE MUTES, THE MOST DANGEROUS TERRORIST GROUP IN THE USA! AND YOU DESERVE RESPECT?!"  
  
Charles was silent. "You are the head of of the Mutes?"  
  
"No, I'm the head of Barbie Dolls United," he spat.  
  
"Jim, I know you're scared for Mimic but being mean to baldy won't help."  
  
"We have to get on a national broadcast."  
  
"Rrrrrrrin...."  
  
"Lilian, please write it down."  
  
She growled and pulled the small chalkboard and chalkbox out of her chest. Xavier paled a little.  
  
I need to use Cerebro.  
  
"But why?"  
  
She erased it and started scribbling again.  
  
I can tap into Mimic's genetic code, then I can use Cerebro to scan a search for that code. You said it wouldn't work on her now, but if it was set differently, it might.  
  
"How well do you know computers?"  
  
I know computers very well.  
  
"Fine, then."  
  
Jim transported Lilian and Charles back to the mansion that the X-Men lived in. Xavier rolled through the hallways and came to a very strange looking computer. Lilian began to fly through the main settings, bypassing passwords like nothing. She then went down to the main core of the information of Cerebro, and she put her finger into a port. The information started changing. Xavier understood none of it, but note it was impossibly comprehensible.  
  
Lilian put the helmet on Xavier's head and typed Search.  
  
It was a very fuzzy journey. Most of it was not seen clearly, but not there were not many people around. He found the black creatures, then he found a few other people, maybe twenty others. The mutant that was moving was in Florida, heading north. He was fast.  
  
"Bayville!" Charles said. "She's here! She needs your help!"  
  
The creature stopped, obviously hearing the mental message.  
  
"Massachusetts! Bayville! Hurry."  
  
The creature then began to run again.  
  
Xavier took the headset off and rubbed his head.  
  
"It worked."  
  
The arrival of Illkune was not expected at the time it was, midday, precisely the time when he would be blinder than a mole. Mimic was watched in shifts, and during one shift, Charles Xavier had a tracking chip planted into her back. The wound healed immediately, and her skin was once again flawless. Mimic had worsened. Her skin was fading to white, and her breathing was getting more hoarse with every hour. Bobby and Jim were in the room nearly all the time, leaving to use the bathroom and shower and that was it. Their food was brought to them, and they had mats to sleep on, although Bobby had dug a hole to sleep in. It was very dark in the room; the only light was from a lantern that Jim had found in the attic.  
  
It was very certain that he had been watching them for a few hours before he got her. Jim had gone that afternoon to take a shower, and Bobby had gone to sleep. When Jim came back, Mimic was gone. He panicked at first, but he knew about the tracking device in her back. He knew he would see her again. He left the room and went upstairs.  
  
"What's the number to the mansion?" he barked at Lance who promptly spat out the number with a hiss attached at the end.  
  
Jim impatiently waited for the phone to ring, and Kitty answered the phone.  
  
"Hey, Kitty, give the phone to Baldy."  
  
"Yeah, sure, Jim."  
  
He waited a few more minutes, then he heard the Professor on the phone. "Jim, hello."  
  
"He's got her."  
  
"Give them a few days to reach their destination. This tracking system uses the satillite system so it should be global."  
  
"Should be?" he buzzed. "Should be?! You better hope so, baldy. If something happens to her, I'll kill you and that damn computer."  
  
He slammed the phone on the hook and glared at Lance.  
  
"I never liked him that much, either."  
  
"Well, there's one thing we agree on. Didn't you see anything?"  
  
"No. But if there's another Mimic, do you really think I would have?"  
  
"Damn!"  
  
Bobby stretched his wings again, flapping them as hard as he could. He felt the air being pushed under him, but his wings were still too short by about a foot. He was very grateful that they had grown that much over the past week. They hurt like hell, but he was willing to sacrifice a lot to gain his flight. He usually would set a bonfire in the backyard and sleep in it, keeping a spare set of clothes sitting in clear distance of the fire. That had worked so far, since his kiln had been destroyed. He hadn't practiced much with his pyrokinesis with Jim, but he thought he was getting the hang of it. Pietro didn't like it that he set the back yard on fire, but Pietro really had no say in it.  
  
Wanda and Elizabeth had continued to hang out, doing strange girl things that have baffled the minds of mankind since time started. Pietro was always somewhere close by. He and Elizabeth had been dating for a few weeks now, and he still took her out on dates. Wanda really didn't object that much. Just as long as Pietro left her alone, he was fine with it. Todd would hang with Bobby and they'd hop around in the backyard. Bobby would parachute, sometimes with Todd on his ankles.  
  
Austin had made a pact with Pietro for a little more of a threat challenge. Pietro and Mark would serve as targets while Austin really tried not to his Pietro. He could if he wanted to, and no one doubted that. Jim had been waiting a very painful four days when the Professor called.  
  
"Jim, phone."  
  
"Thanks, Pietro. Hello?"  
  
(We found her, but you'll never believe where she is.)  
  
"Where?"  
  
(There's an uncharted island in the middle of the Atlantic. That's where the signal's at.)  
  
"Uncharted island. Great. I'll tell everyone to pack extra toilet paper."  
  
(The island isn't on any of the maps I have checked. We might have discovered a new island.)  
  
"Look, if you want to name it Cubaldy, that's fine, but I want my friend back. You have transportation, so get us there."  
  
(Alright, but I suggest you treat me better or I won't help you at all.)  
  
"You know, that's really not a problem. I don't need your help, old man."  
  
(Be here tomorrow morning.)  
  
"Fine. Mutes! We're getting Mimic back! Pack light! We're going to uncharted places of the planet."  
  
Of course they were early the next morning, but there was a limit to how many people could come. Bobby and Jim came out of the Mutes, Lance out of the Brotherhood, and the X-Men. The plane was stocked with supplies, and everyone was ready, especially Jim and Bobby.   
  
The X-Men tended to stay to themselves, with an exception of Kitty who mingled with everyone.  
  
"Kitty, why are we going ta this island anyway?" Rogue said, crossing her arms and snorting.  
  
"We have to like save the black thing that attacked us."  
  
"Save it?"  
  
Bobby didn't like seatbelts. Rogue looked up and found herself staring into bright eyes.  
  
"Bobby, sit down! Gees. Are you related to Iceman or something?"  
  
"Iceman? I'm not ice. I breathe fire!!"  
  
Bobby was yanked backwards into his seat. The seatbelt jerked itself off and tied him to the seat. Bobby glared at Jim and snorted.  
  
"He likes meeting new people," Jim droned from his chair.  
  
"I was just curious. I've never seen anyone that was white before."  
  
"You've seen Mimic. That's just as bad."  
  
"Mimic's black, though."  
  
"Hush or I will close your mouth the entire trip."  
  
Bobby was immediately silent, although small jets of flame came out of his nose.  
  
"Hey, no fire on the jet, bub."  
  
Bobby growled in response, and Wolverine growled back. There was a very strange silence for the remaining two hours.  
  
"There it is..."  
  
Jim was at the window instantly, looking down at the strangely small island.  
  
"Land. She's down there somewhere."  
  
"Yeah, and so are the things that were hunting her," Lance growled.  
  
They landed and exited the plane. It was definitely not inhabited by modern humans. There was jungle everywhere. And the sky was suddenly a lot farther away. The air felt fresh here, and it smelled very distant. Bobby jumped into the nearest tree.  
  
"Ah, home..."  
  
"Be careful, Lizard Boy. I don't know what to expect here."  
  
Bobby snorted at Jim and rested on his branch for a while. Jim and the others looked around.  
  
"No doubt, you are here for my sister," whispered a voice.  
  
Illkune hung down from a tree in front of Jim, causing the boy to fall backwards. He was wearing nothing but pants, and there was a white jewel on his forehead. He had obviously been trained in the same fashion that Mimic had. His body was very detailed, and he looked like he could snap Jim in half with two fingers.  
  
"Ah, the stupid one from before. He he he."  
  
Jim levitated upwards to stare eye to eye into the Mimic's face.  
  
"Where is she?"  
  
"Ah? She's here. But I'm afraid you won't be for too long."  
  
Jim suddenly dropped to the ground. 


	19. Where Is This Place?

Chapter 19  
  
Illkune backflipped onto the ground and extended his arms. Everyone braced for a powerful attack, but none came. Rings began to flow out of his palm. Bobby clung to his tree and watched, trying to be silent. Jim stared at the rings then at Illkune. Illkune lowered his arms and smirked.  
  
"Follow me and keep up. I don't like stragglers, and I could care less about you," he said in his deep voice.  
  
Bobby crawled down from the tree and landed amongst them. Jim looked at him and shrugged. They followed him. Illkune walked through the forest easily since it was familiar to him, but they were nervous the entire way through. Illkune's tail was longer than Mimic's was, and it was alert, seemingly staring back at them.   
  
"What happened to her?" Jim asked, glaring at the back of Illkune's head.  
  
"They called it Amneosis. When we're apart for a long time then reunited briefly, she does that. We both do it, but mine was overlooked as a sickness," he said solumnly.  
  
"Are you going to kill us?"  
  
"Not me personally. Not unless you make me really mad."  
  
Illkune was taller than Jim by about a head, and he seemed like he had been stretched. His feet were strange too, looking similar to the blue mutant's feet, although he had three toes instead of two. He walked upright, not crouched over. His hair was very messy, and it was a very light gray color in this light. Illkune stopped them at a pond, then continued to walk into the water. Jim then noticed that Illkune's eyes had changed color. They weren't red anymore, they were gold. They covered the entire island, coming to the other side or close to it.  
  
"Pray that you can swim well. Most humans don't survive this," Illkune said, diving underwater.  
  
"Don't worry," Jim said to the others. "I've got this covered."  
  
Jim walked into the water and it shrank away from his feet. He motioned to them to come forward, and they all stepped close to him. They sank into the water, watching Illkune's body sinking straight down. They fell for at least five minutes, finally settling in a cloud of dust next to Illkune. He grinned at them and swam along the bottom into a cave that was just tall and wide enough to let one person inside. They each slid inside one at a time, then they saw Illkune climbing out of the water. They surfaced, and Jim levitated them onto the floor.  
  
The walls were covered with white marble, and the floor had silver tiles covering it. Illkune walked forward, running his fingers through his hair and shaking his head rapidly from side to side. They stopped at a large door.  
  
"Mimic, did you find them?"  
  
"Yes, of course I found them. Open the damn door already. They want to see Mimic."  
  
"Mimic? Oh the other one."  
  
Illkune rolled his eyes, and the door opened. The corridor was lined with doors, and everything in the hallway was mechanical aside from the marble walls and silver tiles. Illkune led them down the hallway and into a side door. Inside were a few beds and a bathroom at the far end. Illkune shoved them inside and walked inside last.  
  
"Wait here."  
  
He took a step backwards, and the door opened again. He extended his arms and waves of light show out of his hands.  
  
"Just so you don't try anything," Mimic said as he exited the room.   
  
The first thing Jim tried to do was force the door open, but he found that he couldn't.  
  
"What the fuck?"  
  
He tried to lift one of the beds but nothing would move.  
  
"Try to use your powers. Hurry!"  
  
Kitty ran into the wall. Rogue was ecstatic and hugging the life out of Kitty. Kurt looked at the floor, and for the first time, everyone knew what color Scott's eyes were. They were green.  
  
"That light musta canceled out our powas," Rogue laughed.  
  
Jim pounded on the door. "This isn't a good scenario."  
  
"Well, sorra, but Ah have neva been able ta hug or touch anyone before."  
  
"I don't give a shit what you couldn't do before. We might die, does that have any effect on your brain? Not to mention that while we're in here, they could very much take over the world."  
  
"I doubt it, bub. They would have already, and stop talkin' tah her like that."  
  
"Break it up!" Bobby shrieked. "All we can do now is wait."  
  
Jim pounded against the door once before sliding down the wall.  
  
"FUCK! MIMIC!" 


	20. Lucky Break

Chapter 20  
  
"Mimic?"  
  
Illkune had taken them into a dark room with a spotlight in the center. There were airvents all around the wall, and the floor was a dark steel. Jim saw the familiar white poof in the corner.  
  
"MIMIC!"  
  
Illkune grabbed him and threw him against the others. "Look, lover boy. You want to take her home? You beat her. Can't beat her? Well, you die. Got that? Mimic, here's lunch."  
  
"Oh you know how much I hate junk food," she chuckled.  
  
There were no voices this time. Mimic was speaking in her own voice, which, surprisingly was nothing that they had ever heard before. She sounded human. She was instantly in front of them, cloaked by a strange-smelling purple cloud.  
  
There was a white jewel on her forehead, and her eyes were gold, and they weren't nice. Illkune walked out of the room, smiling at his sister. Mimic immediately backflipped out of their reach, then took her usual stance.   
  
Jim walked forward. "Look, Mimic, please. You're not gonna fight us, are you? We can't beat you."  
  
"Look, bub. Maybe you can't, but we can."  
  
"Wait, a minute, guys," Bobby said. "If we can't beat her, then you can't either. She has a healing power, and that pretty much rules you out. Plue, she's a lot faster than you."  
  
Jim looked confused. "Since when did you get so...knowledgeable?"  
  
"Since Wanda hit me upside the head with the chair..."  
  
"Oh yeah."  
  
"Well, anyway, name your powers."  
  
They named their powers off, but then they all looked at Rogue.  
  
"What?"  
  
Bobby scratched his head. "You said your skin does that right?"  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"Rogue, take your clothes off!" Bobby screeched.  
  
"What?!!!" cried everyone.  
  
"The less you have on the higher the chance she can be touched, right?"  
  
Rogue slowly began to take off her clothes. She was left in her bra a pair of shorts. No one flinched or anything, but she was almost unbearably pale. Rogue walked slowly into the ring. Mimic had retired to the ceiling, bored from their discussion. Bobby turned toward the upside down figure and slowly crawled up the wall, watching her intently. Rogue walked out to the edge of the spotlight and looked up at her. They all stared at Bobby, waiting.  
  
"Snidva?" he whispered, now on the ceiling with her.  
  
She wasn't threatened by him at all. She looked smug if anything, overly confident, but then again, she had never lost a battle before in her life except to tranquilizer. But when he called her name, she didn't respond to it like anyone responded to their name.  
  
"Come up here to face a swift death?" she sneered, dragging her claws along the metal.  
  
"Mimic, don't you remember us?"  
  
"No!"   
  
Mimic slashed across his face with her nails, taking him by surprise by how hard the force was. Bobby fell off the ceiling and hit the floor, scrambling over to Jim before cowering at his feet and tearing up. Jim knelt down and rubbed his head. Mimic was on the ground again, standing behind the spotlight with her gold eyes flashing.  
  
Kurt put his hand on Rogue's shoulder. "You are too slow. Let me help."  
  
Rogue smiled, her eyes flashing with growing tears. Of course she was scared. The woman wore no gloves, just leather pants and vest. She wouldn't be hard to get skin off of.  
  
"Okay, deal, blue boay."  
  
Kurt grabbed her waist from behind. Jim turned to the others.  
  
"We have to help as much as we can. Yo, you with the goggles, keep your eyes open. If she gets way to close, blast her with something that's not fatal. Red-head. You sit back and watch the show. Kitty...hmm. Get ready to run in there. Claws, get ready. Bobby, stay here. You couldn't hurt her if you wanted to."  
  
Kurt teleported to the opposite edge of the spotlight. Mimic smiled at them from her safe point, her eyes slits and her teeth sharper than usual. She backed into the darkness.  
  
"And so it begins," she whispered.  
  
Rogue stretched her arms out, and Kurt was ready to teleport. Mimic suddenly melted into the floor, chuckling at them. Jim opened his eyes wide.  
  
"Get away from there! Hurry!"  
  
Before they knew it, their feet were in a liquid silver puddle. Mimic materialized out of nowhere, grabbing Rogue and Kurt's ankles and ripping them off the floor. Mimic's hands released them, and she hit the wall behind them. The black mutant's head shot towards Jim, and he suddenly was pushed over. Kurt grabbed Rogue and teleported to the other side. Mimic teleported closer to them, that evil smile still on her face. She crouched on the ground and stared for a while, before bursting forward and shoving her fist almost straight through the steel wall. Kurt let out a tiny whimper.  
  
She sank into the floor again, and Kurt began teleporting randomly around the room. Jim warned him again, but there was a barrier over the entrance hall, and no sound came through. Rogue was ripped away from Kurt and slammed against the wall. At once she attached her hands to Mimic's body, but the creature just stared back and smiled, whipping her harder against the floor. Rogue let go and rubbed her head, a thin pond of blood appearing on the floor. Kurt came out of nowhere and wrapped his arms around Mimic's arms and neck.  
  
"Rogue!"  
  
"Claws! Kitty, get him in there!"  
  
Logan touched Kitty's shoulder, and the slid through the barrier, Kitty rushed over to Rogue, and Logan replaced Kurt in the hold. Mimic's tail grabbed around his neck and squeezed. Mimic's arms got free, and she threw Logan into the wall. Logan's face went red in a painless grimace as she punched him in the stomach. She then retracted her fist, drawing a large spike out of Logan's stomach. She then grabbed hold of his neck and twisted it hard to the side. Logan collapsed on the floor, and Kurt was on her in an instant.  
  
A swift kick to the head didn't seem to faze her, but he was safe until she grabbed a hold of his tail. Mimic yanked him down and grabbed him by his throat before bashing his head into the metal walls.  
  
"Kurt! Rogue, get up! She's coming!"  
  
Mimic grabbed Kitty by her arm and tossed her across the floor, leaving Rogue's body on the side. Mimic went for Kitty again, but found that there was an unusual weight on her tail. She turned around and saw two hands squeezing the end of her tail hard. Mimic's hand sharpened into a spike, and she rose it over her head and plunged it into Rogue's shoulder. The girl cried out, but she didn't let go. The spike vanished.  
  
Mimic hit the floor on her knees, her eyes wide and shocked. She tried to get away, but Rogue wasn't letting go. She turned around and kicked Rogue in her ripcage, then in her head. She grabbed the girl and slung her against the floor, but Rogue didn't let go.   
  
Mimic dropped again, and Rogue was suspended in her mind by the power that was rushing into her. Mimic's skin faded to white then it turned tan, and her hair turned brown. Her eyes darkened to a copper color, and her feet began to look more like Illkune's than hers. Rogue held onto her tail, but then she came out of her trance and crawled on top of the other mutant, wrapping her hands around her neck.  
  
Mimic's human form was still nothing human, for no human had a tail, nor feet like that. Mimic suddenly stopped moving, her eyes dead and glazing. The barrier broke, and Rogue was thrown off of Mimic's body. Bobby rushed over to her and scooped her into his arms while the X-Men rushed to Rogue.  
  
"She...killed her!"  
  
"No, she's just unconscious. She'll be okay," Jim assured.  
  
"Yeah, whatever! That's what you said when she stopped breathing!"  
  
"Bobby, shut the hell up!"  
  
Jim lifted Mimic over his shoulder, partially using telekinesis as she weighed more than she appeared to. Jim walked over to the door and kicked it.  
  
"We're still living! Let us out."  
  
The door opened, and they spilled into the hallway, most of them carrying a body. There was a man with a dark tan and white hair standing there, a shocked expression on his face.  
  
"Oh my goodness! Do you idiots have a death wish? Come with me! The hospital wing."  
  
What else could they do? They needed medical attention, some of them. Rogue was close to concussion, and nobody knew about Kurt or Kitty. The man indeed led them to the hospital wing, a room similar to the one they had found in except there were beds and more lights. The beds were strange though. They were lying down, of course, but they were filled with water. The man plucked Rogue out of Logan's arms and rested her in the closest one, fixing a mask over her nose and mouth. The tank closed, and filled itself all the way with water. They stood there in a very awkward silence.  
  
"Mimic! What are you fools waiting for?!"  
  
The docter each helped them into different beds, and Jim took his insomnia medicine, much to the others surprise. After he assured them it wasn't heroin, the doctor started talking.  
  
"Forgive me. My name is Junian Apheros. I am head doctor here."  
  
"Jim Winde."  
  
"Bobby Nite."  
  
"Lance Alvers."  
  
They waited for a long time, most of the time in silence. Doctor Junian left the room frequently, but he did not make any threats to them. Bobby sat next to Mimic's tank, and he pointed out that she was changing again, back into what they were most familiar. Kitty was the first to come to. She started figiting in the liquid, screaming and rubbing her eyes. The tank drained itself and she took the mask off as it opened. She sat up and was scooped out by Dr. Apheros with a blanket in his arms. He put her in a chair and left her to shiver in her blanket. Kurt was next to regain consciousness, then Rogue.  
  
"Why isn't she waking?" Bobby asked, rubbing the glass.  
  
"She's probably just sleeping, now," said the doctor. "She's used to this kind of attention, and the tanks are a very comfortable place to sleep."  
  
The door opened behind them, and some men came inside. Most of them looked a lot younger than the doctor did, but they had the same tan, and brown and blonde hair.  
  
"What are they doing?"  
  
"Mimic needs to have special care," said the doctor.  
  
The men unhooked the tank and carried it out of the room. Bobby was about to spring after them, but a woman entered the room. Brown hair and brown eyes, she looked exactly like the Mimic did.  
  
"Mimic?"  
  
The woman looked up at Bobby and shook her head. Junian snapped his fingers.  
  
"This is Professor Alkina Sidka of Aspen."  
  
The woman looked exactly like the woman Mimic had turned into.  
  
"You...and...? You and Snidva?" Bobby whimpered.  
  
The Professor Sidka looked puzzled at first, then smiled gently. "Ah. No doubt you have seen me before. Snidva is an exact physical copy of me. I am her biological mother." 


	21. Mission to Kill

Chapter 21  
  
"MOTHER?!"  
  
It seemed like Alkina Sidka had a lot of explaining to do. She nodded her head at Jim's outburst.   
  
"Yes, mother. The Mimics' father was the submissive gene to the mutant gene. They both took on my hair, eyes, and skin when they were born."  
  
"What are you talking about submissive gene? Isn't the mutant gene submissive to the human gene?" Jean Gray asked.  
  
Alkina shook her head. "Yes it is, but the gene I have is mutant. The gene we used to create them was neither."  
  
Bobby's eyes lit up. "I told you she was a space alien!"  
  
Jim slid down the wall and started rubbing his head. "So WHAT?! You mean to say she's half mutant, half alien?"  
  
Alkina laughed. "Something like that. We discovered a strand of DNA on a meteorite that hit earth in the year 4260. It took two years to form that DNA strand into a sperm cell to impregnate an egg."  
  
"But this is year 2003."  
  
"The Mimics are a rather remarkable team. Since birth, they have been able to copy just about any living object they come in counter with. Since I am their mother, they have had my power along with their own since birth. I am from the era you speak of. I have the time transportation ability."  
  
She sighed. "It was not expected that the egg cell I gave would produce twins, but that happened. They were born a few years later to myself and an alien creature. Much is know known about this genetic strand. It isn't human for one. It has the ability to greatly increase strength and stamina over a short period of time, it's faster than any living creature. And the greatest ability of all, to copy the X-Gene found in what we call mutants. It's very difficult for the Mimics to keep track of each power, so it is quite impossible for them to use more than three powers at a time, no matter how many they have.  
  
"Yet, they came from one DNA strand, and they share a special bond sometimes found with human twins. For example, if they were to fight each other, they could predict every move the other one made down to the limit of the power used and the extent. Apart, they are both mentally unstable, as you probably have noticed the visual change in eye color. Together, they are stronger."  
  
"But she lost to Rogue."  
  
"Rogue has a very unique power then. I'm sure one on one would have been an easy kill, but then again, Mimic's been acting very odd since she arrived."  
  
"What do you mean odd?"  
  
Professor Sidka shrugged and pulled a disk out of her pocket. "Here are the status plans. By the end of today, they should be at 100% power, unless Snidva gives us any further trouble."  
  
"What kind of mother are you?" Bobby spat. "Selling your own children!"  
  
"Illkune and Snidva do not remember ever having parents. Nor do they remember their birthnames, birthdates, or anything about being born. Their first conscious memory was in a lab. Their purpose was to be tested on, not pampered like children."  
  
"What are you using them for?"  
  
Sidka rolled her eyes again. "World domination. What would anyone use the top military weapons for. We of all deserve the right to use them. That's why we went through the trouble of bringing them back through time."  
  
"We?"  
  
"Atlantians. This is what's left of once the greatest empire ever known to man."  
  
Lance burst forward. "Whoa, wait a damn minute. Atlantis, as in sunken city, and aliens, as in genetic science experiment. This is a lot in one day, lady."  
  
"You deserve to die off if you sell your own offspring to science," Bobby growled.  
  
Junian left the room for a few minutes again. Alkina Sidka put her hands on her hips.  
  
"It wasn't my choice. I volunteered to be the surrogate mother for a science experiment, nothing more, nothing less. They may be my offspring, but never did I connect with them the way I would connect with my own children."  
  
"You do not deserve children."  
  
"That may be your feelings, young one, but I have come a lot farther than you, and I am proud to call those creatures part of me. They will take this world over in a very short time from now. I suggest you be grateful you are not going to be part of the millions dead."  
  
With that, the woman snapped her fingers in front of Bobby's face and walked out of the room. Junian came out from his hiding place and held the disk up. He sighed and sat down in a chair.  
  
"You can't let this happen! You can't want this to happen."  
  
"I don't have a choice," Junian whispered, folding his hands. "The ones who are against this aren't very many."  
  
"That woman is evil."  
  
He nodded. "It's a shame they are of her body. She could never be a real mother, but her act put her in Professor Morgan's sights. The Mimics you wish to set free? The stone on their foreheads must be broken, shattered, if possible."  
  
"How do we stop this?"  
  
Junian shrugged. "Illkune will protect his sister. Snidva won't be alone the next time you fight her, and Illkune is in perfect health, not to mention he has the disabling ability."  
  
"Disable?"  
  
"It knocks mutant powers out. They cannot be used."  
  
"We have to rescue them."  
  
"We could make clones of them. I have the correct genetic information and copies of the original DNA sample. I also have scrubs of both their skin. That could recreate both of them with their powers and distant memories, although they wouldn't be entirely sure about their past."  
  
"How convenient."  
  
"But we would have to use this machinery."  
  
"What if we destroyed Cerebro."  
  
"Then they would vanish. Does Cerebro exist in this era?"  
  
"Yes it does. We would remember her, wouldn't we?"  
  
"Yes, you will keep your memories of her. I will complete the proper medical procedures needed, but you will have to hurry. They launch the attack in two days."  
  
"Shit! Really?"  
  
"The combined powers of the Mimics are greater than any nuclear bomb. They could destroy your country if given enough time to charge their major attack."  
  
"Which is?"  
  
"The Eclipse Missile. It absorbs direct energy from the sun and channels it into the target. It can get hot enough that it can vaporize boulders in less than two milliseconds."  
  
"Oh fuck."  
  
"You must escape here. And hurry. I will start on the clones. I will reach you somehow and tell you status differences. Hurry, and make sure Cerebro can never be rebuilt. If it can, this would have been in vain. Hurry."  
  
And that was the mission. Bobby and Jim took it personally. The next hour, they had burrowed through one of the labs walls and into the open ocean. With Jim at full power and Kurt teleporting people into the jet, they were gone. Suprisingly, the security monitors were down, assistance from Junian Apheros. 


	22. It's Done

Chapter 22  
  
"It's done..."  
  
Bobby shrank to the floor, curling his tail around his body and stretching his wings to their fullest. Scott Summers had finished growing his wings, but even that couldn't stirr his sadness. He wanted his friend to be there when he took flight. Everyone had gathered somewhere in the room, expecting Bobby Nite to jump into the air, but he just shrank down into the floor even more. Sure, he wanted to, but he had wanted her to finish his training.  
  
Cerebro had been destroyed the second day, how close to the beginning of the attacks they didn't know. They arrived in the jet and all of them went to the computer, and all of them had a hand in destroying it. The attack had never occurred, and Bobby could barely live with himself knowing that he had a hand in killing her.  
  
Her name was Snidva Sidka of Aspen, the name of the laboratory that they had been born into. Her brother's name was Illkune Sidka of that same laboratory, two pieces of the same DNA strand. Everything had been figured out. She wasn't human. No part of her was human. Her mother had been born in the ruins of Atlantis, at the beginning of its great rise to power in the future. Doctor Junian Apheros had been born in the same time that they had been, the present, but he had been a part of Atlantis since it had fallen it seemed.  
  
They bordered on seven hundred years of age, each of them. They had been trained obsessively in battle, sometimes like animals of war. For that's all they were, weapons of mass destruction. There had been another mutant to the Chaos Three, a woman they called Element. She supposedly had been genetically created as well to have to power of all the elements, but she was easily taken out by Illkune's Disable attack. Snidva had never obtained that attack, but she gained the Self-Detonation attack, something that could be charged to the point where it had the force to level a city. In the end, Junian had called them. It was kind of odd since Pietro answered the phone, not knowing who the hell was calling, and no one understood how he got that number.  
  
The cloning procedure would take a year, and he mentioned trying to create something on the side.  
  
Bobby had been staying in the attic with Jim, trying to be as seclusing as possible from the other Mutes. Telling Lilian that Mimic was dead had been hard. Lilian melted and coated the floor with her silver body, something akin to tears for her. It wasn't unusual anymore to see Bobby covered and dripping in silver liquid as he came downstairs to eat. Lilian would always shrink off of him and slither back upstairs. It seemed Jim's room became the official mourning room.  
  
Bobby Nite had been growing a lot. He was now the height of Jim Winde, although he was more built, but then again, there was more adrenaline and natural steroids in his system. He was as lean as built would allow him, but he refused to fly. His claws had grown as well, and his tail had grown ridges along the top, while his back remained without.  
  
Lilian spent a lot of time with him lately, even though she only spoke in high shrills, her way of crying.  
  
It was cold that night she joined him on the rooftop. School had started back again a while ago, since it was December now. Bobby was never cold and neither was Lilian, so they could stay out all night without freezing. There was no moon that night, and aside from the light pollution covering some bit of the sky to their right, it was clear, with tiny sparks in the sky. Bobby was leaning against the room, his arms cradling his head. Lilian was sprawled along the apex of the roof behind him.  
  
"The camps were dark," he whispered one night. "Back in Vegas, you know. There weren't any lights except for the lights they had."  
  
Lilian rose her head and chirped.  
  
"I don't know what they fed us, but they didn't feed us very often. I was only fed once. They gave us water to drink every few days, but other than that, no food."  
  
Lilian settled her head back onto the roof, but she was listening.  
  
"Some of them were shot, some were injected. The needle was blue, and they had to rip out some scales right here to get it in."  
  
He held his arm straight up and rubbed the sensitive part of his elbow with his thumb. The scales there had grown back, but they were slightly discolored.  
  
"I don't...know what was in it, but it burned on the inside. They came with more needles, more colors. They couldn't beat me. They never whipped me, not after the first few times. The pain never got through the scales. I used to wonder why I had to look like this, but a lot of mutants died from being beaten to death. I watched them die."  
  
He cringed slightly.  
  
"I watched them die. Sometimes after injections, their chests or heads would explode and splash blood on everyone. I got splashed a lot, but I don't think the chemicals they gave me ever did anything. I think my body ate them before they could do any damage."  
  
Lilian felt her heart beat slower.  
  
"I met this girl there. Her name was Angel, and she was just fifteen. They dissected her while she was still awake. At least that's what the others told me. I only knew her for a few days, but I missed her."  
  
Bobby sighed.  
  
"It felt so long in there. Time seemed to slow down. It felt...so...long. There was no day or night. There was only the flashlights and the pain."  
  
Lilian put her arm on his shoulder and cooed.  
  
"Yeah, thanks, Lil. I never want to go back there again. I know that's a kinda duh, but never again."  
  
She shrilled and chirped.  
  
"I miss her," he whispered. "There was something I should have done. I should have fought her. I should have found it. I found that should have...broken that thing on her head."  
  
Lilian rubbed his head and cooed agreement.  
  
"I wonder what you know. I heard in the camps that the ones that didn't talk knew the most. I wonder what you know. I wonder what you could have taught us and can teach us."  
  
Bobby rolled onto his stomach and drew his legs into a crouched positon, holding his wings out like he was about to jump into space. He stared her straight in the eyes and just waited.  
  
"I...wonder...what she could teach us. She wasn't as quiet as you are, but...she was old. She came from a place that we'll never see, and she was born in a time we'll never experience."  
  
Lilian looked skyward and shrilled again.  
  
"She felt...free. Even if I couldn't fly, when I was with her, I could go wherever I wanted. She was never held back by anything. She was free."  
  
Lilian stood up on her back legs and roared the only way a beast of metal could. Bobby barked a few times than growled as loud as he could.  
  
"I'll see her again. Then I'll be free. Then I can be free."  
  
Lilian smiled and patted him on his head, whispering something in her own little language. Bobby turned and looked at her for a few minutes, smiling.  
  
"Let's get some sleep. Boy, living here's really messed up our sleeping patterns, hasn't it?"  
  
Lilian laughed and nodded, crawling down the side of the boarding house after Bobby.   
  
"Did you ever fix the cable?"  
  
Inside the attic, Jim was lying on his bed, staring at the ceiling and playing with some marbles that he had found. Bobby crawled into his nest of old bedsheets and pillows, muttering something of a "Good night" to Jim. Lilian came in as well, pulling the window closed with her tail before crawling to a corner. She stretched herself out and went to sleep.  
  
Jim looked at Bobby out of the corner of his eye.  
  
"I miss her too," he admitted. "Even if she was a rotten little bitch."  
  
He heard Bobby growl slightly. "She was my friend..."  
  
"She'll be back," Jim whispered. "She'll be back. We might have to jog her memory, but she'll be back. And I'll have my sparring partner again."  
  
Even that made Jim smile. The world was too boring without someone to fight with. What was good without evil?  
  
Bobby curled up in his nest and hid his head. What was anything without friends? 


	23. I Can't Get Over You

Chapter 23  
  
It was unknown how Bobby just all of a sudden figured out Mimic's real name without her even knowing it. Bobby had become something of an animal. He didn't talk much anymore, except to Jim and Lilian. He'd sometimes lie at Elizabeth's feet and just be, like while she was sitting with Pietro watching television. Fred and Todd became extremely worried about him, as he didn't eat much anymore. Elizabeth would rock him when she could, although he wasn't small enough for her to hold in her arms anymore, so she'd cradle his head in her lap while he slept.  
  
Mark and Austin kept to themselves mainly, but Mark was worried about Bobby too. He left Austin's head once every few hours to check on him. Mimic wasn't Mark's friend, but there was a bond between Mimic and Bobby that no one could really figure out. She had it with Lance once too, but it vanished when he abandoned them. Lance knew she would never trust him again, but she trusted him more than any other member of the Brotherhood.   
  
Bobby was sleeping a lot now, hibernating since it was winter, they guessed. Elizabeth would take his food to him, and she'd talk with Lilian the best she could about what he was feeling. Bobby was the baby, and everyone felt responsible for him. When he was sad, they were sad with an exception for Austin, who had killed his feelings a long time ago.  
  
Jim was the only one that knew what was sort of going to happen. He wasn't sure what she would look like, nor if she would act the same. She'd probably be the baby from then on, considering she'd be actually about a year old. They'd have to recruit Illkune too, with him being non-evil and her brother. Jim wondered what it would be like not remembering anything. He wondered if she'd be able to understand them.  
  
Would she remember them? The Mutes? The people she had lived with. They were her friends, even Jim. Jim made a fuss every chance he could, but he would help her if she was in danger. Jim prayed she remembered Bobby. Bobby needed it. For his life's sake, he needed her to remember him and that friendship there.  
  
"Jim?"  
  
"Yeah, Bobby?"  
  
Bobby's nest kinda stuck in his room, but Jim wasn't one to complain. Bobby was quiet, and Jim really didn't mind that much. The lizard boy only took up a minor portion of his room.  
  
"I...is this depression?"  
  
Jim sighed softly. "Yes, Bobby. It's depression. What you're going through."  
  
Bobby was quiet for a while, and Jim heard him move around. "What do you dream about," he said in his gentle voice, "when you have those nightmares?"  
  
"Dark times. Most of the time it ends with everyone dying, even me."  
  
"You really wanted her dead, didn't you? I heard you in your room."  
  
Jim rubbed his forehead and slid his hand through his hair. "I did, but I didn't realize how much I needed her around."  
  
"Me either."  
  
"Bobby, we'll get her back."  
  
"Hopefully for good this time."  
  
"For good this time."  
  
Bobby perked up in the spring. He, Todd, and Fred started a flower garden in the backyard, and it was definitely a sacred place. Bobby loved the flowers. He'd just sit and watch them for hours on end. Maybe the smell was what cheered him up, but at least he was eating again. They were very careful not to talk about Mimic. Any mention of her and the poor thing would go upstairs and sit.  
  
It was raining today, and Bobby didn't take too well to the rain. Nor did he like bathtime either. They all had turns for the bathroom, but Bobby'd go somewhere and set himself on fire. That worked though. No bacteria could survive the heat, and he never got wet. But it was raining and the house was no place to set one's self on fire, so bathtime it was. Basically, he rolled around in the water and left, complaining of itching and horrible discomfort for the rest of the day. No more baths for him.  
  
"Bobby, phone."  
  
Bobby had never received a phone call before. He looked at Wanda curiously and tilted his head to the side before creeping over to her. She rolled her eyes and handed him the phone.  
  
"Uh...Hello?"  
  
"Bobby? This is Junian. Jim said in our last call that you might want to know the progress of the clones."  
  
Bobby froze and sat on the floor. "Yes?"  
  
"They are somewhere close to 10% complete. By the end of May, you'll have your friends back, but be warned that they might not remember anything."  
  
Bobby nodded. "Yes, I know. Jim told me that."  
  
"Also they may be a little beast-like for a while but I assure you, they will grow out of it."  
  
"Okay. Just hurry, but don't make mistakes."  
  
Junian laughed. "I will, son. I'll hurry."  
  
"And no mistakes!"  
  
"No mistakes. Bye."  
  
"Bye."  
  
He crept over to the sofa where Elizabeth was sitting with Wanda on one side and Pietro on the other. He collapsed on her feet and groaned.  
  
"Bobby?"  
  
"10%. This is taking too long..."  
  
"They'll be back. Just wait."  
  
Wanda suddenly looked around the room. "I haven't seen Lance around here in a while, do any of you know where he is?"  
  
"Over at Kitty's," Bobby groaned.  
  
"Oh god, not again."  
  
Bobby ventured out into the flower garden when the sun was out and sank into the mud in front of it. Todd hopped after him.  
  
"Bobby?"  
  
"Mmm?"  
  
"Did you like her, you know, like that?"  
  
"Of course I liked her. She's my friend."  
  
Todd scratched his head. "No, I mean...like I like Wanda."  
  
"I don't know."  
  
Bobby rolled over in the mud and blew bubbles in the watery dirt.  
  
"You know they're going to make you take a bath, don't you?"  
  
"I can burn now."  
  
"Well, burn and get it over with."  
  
Bobby jumped out of the mud and walked over to a singed place on the lawn. He wrapped his wings around himself and took his pants off, then he lit up like a Christmas tree. The fire died, and Bobby waited for a long time on the ground.  
  
"I think you liked her yo," Todd said, hopping over towards him.  
  
Bobby poked his head out and looked solumn. "Maybe I did."  
  
Todd smiled. "Maybe she'll like you too...when she gets back."  
  
Bobby's tail whipped out and grabbed his pants. "Maybe, but I doubt it."  
  
He folded his wings on his back and crouched on the ground, shaking off the dry mud.  
  
"When are you going to fly?"  
  
"When she's here."  
  
Todd smiled. "Yeah, let's go inside yo." 


	24. Why Do I Want to Die?

Chapter 24  
  
That one year was almost over when they got the last call from Junian. Jim took the call, but no one got any information off of it. Jim wasn't talking. He just went up to his room and closed the door. Bobby was sleeping in his nest, and Jim collapsed on his bed.  
  
"99%...," he whispered.  
  
Jim went to sleep and dreamt of pleasant things for the first time in a while. The hard part was almost over.

* * *

It was quite a shock to see Junian's old face at the door. Wanda answered it, and the old man said he was looking for Jim and Bobby. She had no idea who he was, so she called them both down. Bobby was a little sleepy, having been levitated to the bottom of the stairs and dropped by Jim. Winde was at the door in an instant.  
  
"Junian...are they...?"  
  
The white-haired man smiled and opened his arms. "They are fine."  
  
Jim watched as they materialized out of thin air in front of him, and Bobby stood up and rubbed his eyes. They were dressed in long robes with hoods. Snidva was shorter than she had been and her eyes were gold, but she looked the same. Illkune was shorter as well and had the same gold eyes. Snidva stared at them with large eyes with uncertainty on her face.  
  
"Snidva, Illkune, your family..."  
  
Jim moved to the side and ushered them in. Bobby stood at the door and watched silently. Snidva didn't remember anything it seemed like, and Bobby felt something inside him die. The more he looked at her, the more it shriveled. She stayed close to Illkune and Junian, scared of everything else.  
  
She didn't know them.  
  
Bobby walked outside and closed the door before walking into the flower garden and burrowing into the mud. Todd came out there after a few minutes.  
  
"Bobby..."  
  
"She doesn't remember."  
  
Todd looked at the ground and sighed. "It might take time."  
  
"Just leave me alone."  
  
"Alright yo. I can do that."  
  
Bobby stayed outside as it began to rain, semi praying that he would drown in the mud. At least he'd die in the flower garden. With that as his last thought, he rolled onto his side and went to sleep. He really just wanted to go to sleep and never wake up.

* * *

A tap on the shoulder woke the dragon boy. Bobby stirred and opened his eyes to look up at the dark-robed Illkune. The Mimic offered his hand, and Bobby took it and scrambled to his feet.  
  
"You...mad at her?" he whispered, unsure of himself.  
  
Bobby shook his head and looked at the ground. "I want her to remember..."  
  
Illkune nodded. "I do not remember a lot either, but...I think...I do not want to remember. Snid...has things here that I think she wants to remember."  
  
Bobby sank to the ground again.  
  
"She saw you...when you came out here. She remembers your name and your face."  
  
"I miss my friend."  
  
Illkune stood in silence staring down at Bobby with concern flooding his eyes.  
  
"Let us go inside. Speak to her. She might remember something else."  
  
Bobby closed his eyes and fell over. "I...just want my friend back."  
  
Illkune sighed and walked away a little ways. "You need to talk to her alone, if you ever talk to her."  
  
The black creature in the purple robes walked inside the house again, and it once again began to rain. Hours passed, and Bobby finally came inside dripping with water. He shook most of it off at the door, then came in and started to sizzle. Junian was sitting on the couch with the Brotherhood teenagers, talking about how interesting the world once was to their misery. He caught sight of Bobby and smiled.  
  
"They're in the attic, Bobby. Jim's up there too."  
  
He groaned and nodded his head before heading towards the stair well. Each passing step made his heart sink lower until he was dragging his body up the stairs. He went to the one door that led to the attic and turned the knob with his tail. Up more stairs he went, coming into the open room. She was sitting on Jim's bed, and Illkune was sitting next to her. Jim and Lilian were sitting against the far wall. Everyone looked at him as he rose.  
  
Bobby looked at the floor and slinked across the room. Illkune stood and put his hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him and then looked back at Bobby, her ears pointing towards him. Illkune nodded his head and left the room. Lilian followed him, and Jim was the last to leave. Bobby shrank closer to the floor as he felt her eyes on him.  
  
"I...remember you," she said. Her voice wasn't scratchy or animalistic anymore. It was soft and her own, scared and unsure. "I remember your face, and your name is Bobby Nite."  
  
He felt sick to his stomach, but he gathered enough courage to look up at her. He nodded his head and closed his eyes, hiding his face from her. He heard her get off Jim's bed and wander close. She knelt down in front of him and sat. He sat up and looked at her for a few seconds before hiding his face again.  
  
"I am sorry I cannot remember anything," she whispered.  
  
He looked up at her and shook his head. "I...just missed you. Now, everything's different because you don't know me anymore..."  
  
"I will try hard to remember you."  
  
"It's not you," he confessed, rubbing his head. "I guess I'm scared. I don't know what to do now. I don't know how to take this."  
  
Snidva moved forward and embraced him softly. His body tensed up immediately, but he started to cry and wrapped his arms around her back.  
  
"I...just want...to be friends again."  
  
His grip on her tightened, and she waited in his arms as he cried, feeling sad herself that she didn't know who he was except for his name, his face, and a blank memory that she wanted to believe was special.

* * *

"So what was this side experiment you were talking about?" Jim asked from his corner.  
  
Junian snapped his fingers. "I'm creating the father!"  
  
Everyone looked at him. "What...?"  
  
"I've taken the pure gene and created a male subject with it. It's a pure specimen, though, and it's still taking time to develop. It's in its fetal stage right now."  
  
"You're making another one? Is that wise?" Lance whimpered.  
  
"I will keep it properly isolated and restrained. It shouldn't be a problem."  
  
Jim didn't like that word. Shouldn't. It was never 100%.  
  
Snidva came downstairs slowly, one step at a time. She stopped at the bottom and looked at Jim.  
  
"Bobby is sleeping," she said simply, walking over to Illkune and hiding behind his back.  
  
Illkune didn't move, just turned his head to look at her for a few minutes. Pietro and Elizabeth were absent again, probably gone out on a date. Wanda was grateful that he found someone serious and wasn't jumping around with multiple girls anymore. Todd was still following her around, but at least Bobby destracted him sometimes.  
  
Illkune and Snidva had two beds in the same room in the basement. They had gone to bed early that morning. Illkune sensed that she had something to talk about.  
  
"There was something special that I have to remember. There was something special that we had that I need to remember."  
  
Illkune sat next to her and put his arm around her shoulders. "Give it time, and you will remember everything."  
  
"I cause him pain, and I don't know why."  
  
She hid her face in her hands and leaned against him. Illkune hugged her close.  
  
"He cares for you. Seeing you again hurts him because you do not remember him caring for you."  
  
"I wish I could remember."  
  
"Keep speaking to him. He knows of your past. He will help you remember."  
  
They slept peacefully the entire day, and Snidva had a surprise waiting for her in the morning. It turns out she was about Wanda's size, so Wanda and Elizabeth set out to get her something of a wardrobe. Illkune had Lance and Pietro to do that job. Oh was it going to be a fun week.... 


	25. The Acolytes' Homecoming Party

Chapter 25  
  
As it turns out, Snidva was rather shy when it came to modeling these strange clothes to the girls that bought them. Even though it was just Elizabeth and Wanda, it felt strange to show off skin-tight shirts and various kinds of slacks, skirts, and dresses. Thank God for Lilian's silver trees since they paid cash for them. They did buy her some cotton pajamas and a pretty nightgown. Those she did like, particularly because they were soft and comfortable.  
  
"Oh, that's cute," Elizabeth vouched for the black tube top and long, neon pink leather skirt.  
  
Needless to say, pink wasn't Wanda's favorite color, but the outfit did look neat, even on Snidva. They bought an assortment of white clothes too, to contrast her skin color. Snidva soon learned that she liked the cotton pajamas the most.  
  
And that's what Snidva spend most of her days in, except for the few outfits in between to substitute while the pajamas were washed. Snidva was dressed in some casual clothing, some black cargos with a white tank top. Illkune was dressed in loose jeans and a t-shirt. His hair was messy as he hadn't combed it that morning, and hers was spiked. Lilian had finally fixed the cable and right when the Huggies commercial went off, Gambit burst through the door. Snidva immediately jumped next to her brother, and Bobby jumped next to her, snarling from his crouch on the floor.  
  
"Ah? Oh de Mimic have a brothah? Just as good."  
  
"What do you want?" Lance spat from the kitchen.  
  
Fred and Toad came out of the kitchen and stood blocking the doorway. Wanda and Pietro were down the stairs in an instant. Gambit had a gun aimed at his head and something of a dust cloud circling around it. Elizabeth followed Wanda down, and Lilian flowed down the stairwell.  
  
"Just wanted to give a gift to de little lady."  
  
Bobby growled and stood in front of the two Mimics, his wings outstretched. He felt Snidva move closer to him.  
  
"You're not giving her anything," Wanda spat. "Get out!"  
  
"Ah, no, chere. 'Fraid Remy can't do dat."  
  
He stepped slightly inside the house and let Sabretooth and Colossus in, followed by Pyro and last, Magneto. Jim sniggered a little upon their entry.  
  
"What have we done for this pleasure, oh sacred one?" he growled.  
  
Magneto looked first at Illkune, then at the smaller Snidva.  
  
"Two, wonderful," he whispered.  
  
There were no guns this time, but they didn't have their greatest weapons back yet either.  
  
"Look," Jim said, walking up to Magneto with his hands in his pockets. "We both, as civilized men," he paused, bowing slightly at his waist, "know that my side can wipe the ground with your side, so I suggest you retreat before things get ugly..."  
  
"Stand aside, imp. I do not wish you harm. I just merely want to meet her. No weapons. No powers."  
  
"So why come in the getup, pops?" Wanda hissed. "Why come as Magneto?"  
  
Magneto seemed annoyed with her. "To prevent your savages from causing us damage."  
  
"Yeah, fine, metal head, but you get your lackies to stay outside.  
  
"Can I set the yard on fire?" Pyro peeped from the doorway.  
  
"No, John. Agreed."  
  
They grumbled and backed out of the door. Magneto closed it without even looking.  
  
"Bobby, move aside. If he makes any faces, rip his head off."  
  
Bobby moved his wing, but he followed Eric as he walked across the room. Snidva shrank against Illkune and Bobby, trying to hide.  
  
"Miss, I wish you no harm," Eric whispered. "Mimic...?"  
  
He held his hand out innocently. She took it very hesitantly and cautiously, and he shook it gently. She then pulled it quickly away from him and tried to hide behind Bobby's wing. Bobby stepped in front of her and crossed his arms.  
  
"You are very rude," Eric said.   
  
"And you are very suspicious."  
  
"Okay, whatever, now leave."  
  
"Little lady, if you ever become bored with these...people...then you just come looking for us, and we'll pick you up," Eric said, walking out the door. "We really aren't all that bad."  
  
"What the hell was that all about?" Lance said, rubbing his head.  
  
"A total waste of ten minutes, let me tell you," Elizabeth groaned.  
  
Snidva grabbed onto her brother's arm, and Bobby crouched on the edge of the sofa next to where she was standing.  
  
"I don't understand why he'd just come in and shake her hand."  
  
"Bobby probably scared him off. I'd definitely be afraid of a pissed off Bobby than Sabretooth yo," Todd said, tossing his arm in the air.  
  
Snidva buried her head in Illkune's arm. The male Mimic looked at Bobby and smiled, rubbing Snidva's hair with his unoccupied arm.  
  
"Whatever his purpose was, he is gone now."  
  
There was another knock on the door, and a small package was pushed inside the door as it closed. Elizabeth picked it up and read the tag.  
  
"For de chere. From Remy an Rogue. Who's Rogue?"  
  
"She's one of the X-Men. She musta sent Mimic a welcome back present or something."  
  
Elizabeth handed the box to Snidva and watched as she stared at it before carefully pulling the paper off.  
  
"Kitty must have told Rogue that Mimic was back."  
  
Inside the paper was a velvet box, and inside the velvet box was a silver bracelet.  
  
"Oh, that is lovely. Put it on, Snidva," Illkune cooed.  
  
She slid it onto her delicate wrist, and it shimmered. She smiled at Bobby and Illkune and looked at her bracelet.  
  
"How sweet."  
  
Bobby purred low in his throat and fell onto the cushions of the couch. He laughed slightly, staring up at the ceiling.  
  
Gambit came into the house again, unaided by his companions. Everyone stopped to look at him, and Snidva uttered a soft thank you. Remy smiled and nodded his head.  
  
"You are very welcome, chere. Mah woman asked Remy to pick up sometin for de little chere."  
  
"Well, we appreciate it," Jim said.  
  
Remy leaned against the wall and crossed his arms.  
  
"So how are you and Rogue, anyway?" Lance said from the couch.  
  
"We be good. Still seein' each otha."  
  
Lilian materialized and peered out the nearest window and snarled. Bobby pounced in that direction and looked out of the window.  
  
"What are you losers still doing here? He can walk! Leave!"  
  
Remy walked to the window. "It be alright. Remy be fine."  
  
They walked into these metal spheres that seemed to have just appeared out of the sky. Then they were gone in an instant. Bobby growled in their direction.  
  
"I don't like those people."  
  
"Ah, they aren't so bad once yah overlook John's insanity, Victor's loving care, Piotr's silence, and de metal man's strict curfew."  
  
Well, the Cajun helped make dinner, inviting Rogue over to help. Snidva didn't remember Rogue or any of the X-Men except for Kitty. Both the Mimics liked Cajun cooking, and Bobby was having a good time just lounging in the corner over his own food. He felt peace now, watching his friends and their new accomplice enjoy dinner. 


	26. I Can Fly

Chapter 26  
  
"Snidva?" Bobby mumbled, nudging her sleeping body with his tail. "Snidva, I want to show you something."  
  
She groaned and rubbed her eyes, sitting up on one elbow. "Bobby?"  
  
"I know you've gotten used to sleeping at night, but please come with me right now. I want to show you something."  
  
She slid out of bed in her nightgown and rubbed her eyes. Bobby took her hand and led her out of the basement and into the attic. Of course Jim was up, and he watched them cross the room silently. Bobby opened the window and crawled out, wrapping his tail around the smaller creature to nudge her out. He grabbed her hands and pulled her onto the roof.  
  
"Bobby? Why are we out here?"  
  
"Before you left, you were trying to teach me how to fly. We had to grow my wings out because they used to be...this big," he made a distance between his hands roughly one foot long. "To grow them out, I had to be in extreme heat for a very long time. When you left, they were about this size but shorter. Scott Summers helped my grow them the rest of the way. And now...I want to fly."  
  
"But I don't know how to fly."  
  
"I've had my wings for about half a year, and I wanted to fly when you came back, so you'd see."  
  
Snidva looked highly confused, but she nodded her head. "You want me to fly with you?"  
  
Bobby smiled and nodded. "Yes!"  
  
Snidva looked at the ground then back at him. She inched closer, and he wrapped his arms around her from behind. Her tail instantly curled around his waist, but that didn't bother him. He stretched his wings and breathed deeply. His wings beat against the air, and he began lifting off of the roof. He threw his weight forward, and they began moving. Snidva grabbed hold of his arms tightly at first, but as they went higher and farther away from the boarding house.  
  
"You've never flown before? Have I ever flown before?"  
  
"Well, I've flown before, but Jim always uses his telekinesis. You've flown that way too. That's usually how you flew."  
  
She held her arms out and laughed. "I...remember this. I remember flying...over the lights..."  
  
Finally in the sky where he was meant to be. Dragon finally lived up to his name. With stamina that came from no where, Bobby beat his wings stronger and longer, going faster and farther away from the house. Snidva didn't seem so scared anymore, not of him, not of the world around her. Bobby looked down at her, and she smiled at him, her eyes wide and happy.  
  
His wings felt liberated. His body felt liberated, and he was free. Everything was free now, for him anyway. His goal was to fly with her, and here he was. He was flying. It seemed...so right. He was a beast of the air!  
  
Jim was awake still when they came in the next morning. Snidva had fallen asleep, and Bobby took her downstairs curled up in his arms. Jim smiled at him, and Bobby smiled back.  
  
"She remembers Vegas..."  
  
"Getting closer."  
  
The night flight turned things around entirely. Snidva was more talkative, and she didn't hide behind Illkune that much anymore. She was using her tail now and stealing food from other plates to see how fast she was. Illkune noticed this change and was eagar to try his newfound skills. They still had some inch of society left in them, and Snidva wouldn't crawl along walls or the ceiling for that matter. It was unlady-like, but they though when they broke through the memory barrier it wouldn't be so bad to her.  
  
Bobby lounged close to her always, curled up in a corner of the floor with his eyes on her. He was at peace now, with his wings flight broken and his mind set free. Todd could sit on his shoulder now, since he was large enough and could the smaller mutant quite easily. His wings would be a hassle sometimes, but that was easily solved ususally.  
  
Then, there was the one day that Wanda brought a stray black cat home.  
  
"We keep him! I don't fucking care if you don't like cats!"  
  
"But Wanda!!!"  
  
"WE KEEP HIM!"  
  
And they named him Icubus. Snidva nor Illkune had ever seen a cat before, and their curiosity was almost...entertaining. Icubus seemed to like Illkune a lot, but Illkune was kind of afraid of him at first.  
  
"What is it?" Snidva asked. "Does it bite?"  
  
Wanda put Icubus on the floor and stroked him. "He can bite but not if you pet him gently."  
  
Mimic crept over to the cat and ran her hand down his back. The cat arched against her hand, and she jerked it back. Wanda smiled.  
  
"He won't hurt you."  
  
Snidva pet him again, scratching his little kitty head. He began making a strange noise, but Snid didn't stop petting him.  
  
"What is he doing?"  
  
"He's purring. It means he likes you."  
  
"Oh...he is vibrating."  
  
"That's also a good thing."  
  
"Good kitty."  
  
Illkune would later hear about the adventure with the cat from his sister. Junian left later that day to go back to what was left of Atlantis, claiming he had his experiment to look after. He left Snidva and Illkune alone with their new family. Illkune and Jim got along surprisingly, since Jim didn't really get along with anyone. Bobby followed Mimic around as usual, and Pietro was out with Elizabeth.  
  
No one had really noticed that Wanda's crush on Austin had dissapated. She was more in tune to Icubus now than him. Of course, Austin didn't notice as usual. Mark did, but, of course, he forgot it faster than he remembered it.  
  
Snidva had gone to sleep one night while watching Reno 911 with the rest of the kids. Bobby was watching it over her head, and he noticed at once.  
  
"Don't touch her, Bobby. She's not a baby."  
  
He growled at Elizabeth, but he retreated.  
  
"I know you want to keep her safe, but she's a warrior beyond our years, and I think she'll survive."  
  
Illkune coughed. "Actually, we are only about a year old, and even if we are warriors, we remember next to nothing. Myself most of all."  
  
Wanda growled to herself. "Use contractions! Not we are! We're! Say it!"  
  
Illkune shrank into the shadows. "We're?"  
  
"Good..."  
  
Illkune cowered away. "Don't kill me..."  
  
Bobby scooped Snidva up and jumped onto the couch, resting her against him. Elizabeth had been looking at Illkune and didn't get to yell at him when he did it. He shot her an evil grin.  
  
"One day, lizard boy...," she growled.  
  
Bobby nuzzled her head and cradled her in his arms. Wanda looked at him and rolled her eyes.  
  
"Boy, you have it BAD."  
  
"Have what?"  
  
"You're in loooove," Elizabeth cooed, fluttering her eye.  
  
Bobby growled and went back to his treasure. Illkune jumped on the ceiling and crawled across it, sitting just over Bobby.  
  
"Since when did you learn you could do that?"  
  
"Since about thirty seconds ago. This is neat..."  
  
"Ah, well. Good for you."  
  
"Southpark? What is this Southpark?"  
  
"What's."  
  
"What's this Southpark?"  
  
"It's a horribly impersonating, animated cartoon that's funnier than Hell..."  
  
Illkune looked puzzled. "Hell is supposed to be about torture, isn't it?"  
  
"It's not to be taken literally," Lizbeth said.  
  
Illkune nodded his head. "Ah."  
  
Snidva coughed in her sleep, and Bobby cuddled her closer.  
  
"Is Lance still with Kitty?"  
  
"Yeah, he said he was staying over there with her tonight."  
  
"How cute."  
  
Illkune fell off the ceiling, landing on his hands and doing a complete backflip. They all looked back at him in shock, and he just shrugged his shoulders.  
  
"I do not know how I do that..."  
  
"Ahem!! Don't!"  
  
"I don't know how I do that."  
  
Wanda nodded with victory, and Illkune was left grumbling over stupid slang. 


	27. Last Shot's In the Head

Chapter 27  
  
"AUSTIN?! WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING?!!"  
  
It was rather unexpected when Austin came out of his room the next morning and started shooting rounds at both Illkune and Snidva, mainly Snidva. Bobby was awake instantly, but by that time, Snidva had been hit twice in the leg, thirteen times in the chest, and her ear had been shot.  
  
But she was sitting on the fucking ceiling, and she was moving faster than ever. Bobby was about to shred Austin, but Elizabeth calmly stopped him.  
  
"No, look. She's fighting."  
  
Snidva had picked up a chair and had hurled it in Austin's general direction. He fired some more rounds at Illkune, who had been dodging them the entire time, but then he aimed perfectly and shot one at her again.  
  
"No, Austin!"  
  
Bobby tried to get in the way when he saw where KO was aiming.  
  
"NO, AUSTIN! NOT HER HEAD!"  
  
He raked his talons across Austin's back as he fired the gun, but the bullet hit its target. Snidva hit the wall, and Illkune was on Austin in an instant. She slowly slid down the wallpaper leaving a red trail with a weak smile on her face. Austin was being punched in the face by Bobby, but Elizabeth scared him off. Bobby retreated next to Snidva and started crying, sobbing against her bloody body, her white clothes ruined. As Bobby got off, Illkune got on, and Austin aimed his gun straight at the man's chest before he moved away.  
  
"She will HEAL, damn you both!" he gasped.  
  
"YOU KILLED HER!"  
  
"SHE WILL HEAL! LOOK AT THE WOUNDS ON HER BODY!"  
  
Bobby dug around in her shirt and saw no bullet holes, then when he looked back at her head where the dark red hole was closing up quickly. She lay against him after it closed for a few minutes, but then she groaned and coughed up blood. She looked up at Bobby then sat bolt upright.  
  
"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?!" she screeched, jumping up and kicking Austin straight in the stomach. "WHAT THE FUCK DID I EVER DO TO YOU, YOU SORRY PIECE OF...?!"  
  
Austin just grinned as she came to the realization that she remembered the many times he shot her her in their hole of a home.  
  
"Austin...?"  
  
"I...knew that...would work...now if you please...hospital..."  
  
Of course, that's what happened. Austin was sent to the hospital to be treated for a broken cheek bone, numerous broken ribs, and lots of fractured bones. Mimic rubbed her eyes and focused on the outside.  
  
"It...ugh..."  
  
She fell onto the floor, staining the carpet and wood. Bobby crawled on the floor next to her.  
  
"Everything...Oh god...it's all there."  
  
The laboratory with all its machines and sounds. The bars, the blood. The tests. The kills. Murder. Blood. Death. Element...dead. Illkune killed her. The lab, escaping. Being caught again. Escaping. Cerebro...  
  
The computer...  
  
Bobby smiled and hugged her.  
  
"Cerebro is dead..."  
  
"It's all over..."  
  
And she promptly fainted.

* * *

"Hey, Jim. The father's progressing very well. He should be due sometime in the next year as well, so I'll keep you updated."  
  
"Junian, what destroyed Atlantis?"  
  
There was a deep silence.  
  
"Supposedly," he began. "Time repeats itself ever so often. During the first Apocolypse, Atlantis was destroyed by a bright light that flashed over the city and vaporized it. That's what the old records say. I wasn't alive during the time of the ancients, but that's what was written. Atlantis was rebuilt later, during Plato's age. Because of the corruption of so many people due to the outside world, Atlantis was drawn beneath the ocean, leaving the corrupted behind to die."  
  
"What do you mean time repeats itself so open?"  
  
"It is written. The Apocolypse has happened already once. It will happen again. Everything repeats itself."  
  
"That still makes no sense!"  
  
"Time repeats itself. Whatever destroyed the world during the first Apocolypse will happen again."  
  
"What are you suggesting?"  
  
"The Mimics are the most powerful weapons that will be known to man for the next four millenia. There are no specifics for the first Apocolypse except for the bright light, but in the Mimic's time, the world was destroyed by a bright light. That light was created by the Mimics' disable ability. All electricity except for that put into protective storage for the time, was vanquished. The world slowly slipped to anarchy, and Atlantis ruled supreme in a time of hardship."  
  
"Are you saying that the Mimics are what destroyed the world during the first Apocolypse...?"  
  
"They destroyed the world during this time, and it is said that your time is destroyed, then rebuilt. It is entirely possible that the Mimics' we know now are reincarnations or part of the reason that the world was destroyed the first time."  
  
"Okay, okay, okay. You knew this, and you're making ANOTHER one?!"  
  
"The father will be properly restrained."  
  
"What proof do you have, Junian! The Mimics are supposedly invincible! How can you contain another one!"  
  
"I have the technology, Jim!"  
  
There was a simple answer. "No, you don't."  
  
Click.  
  
"Well, what do you want me to do?! Destroy it!?  
  
"Jim...?" 


	28. Blame

Chapter 28  
  
"What's wrong?"  
  
Mimic walked into the room with white clothes on, plopping down in a chair at the table. It was past three in the morning, but of course, this meant nothing to Insomnia. He looked up at her over a book. She raised one eyebrow and crossed her arms.  
  
"You said once that you had a time travel power, yeah?"  
  
He avoided eye contact after he started speaking. Mimic nodded her head.  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"What's the farthest that you've ever gone back in time?"  
  
"Not really sure they HAD time back then, why?"  
  
"Was Illkune with you?"  
  
"Yeah...where is this going?"  
  
He sighed. "Junian said that Atlantis was destroyed by a bright flash of light. Was that you and Illkune?"  
  
Mimic was quiet for a moment, then she stood up.  
  
"That's what happens when two great forces turn against each other. Forces of equal power, strength, speed. That was the first time we had ever gone back in time and we weren't sure how were were gonna get back. We got in a fight. We didn't know what happened."  
  
"He also said that your original time was destroyed."  
  
"We destroyed that too, but that was after they turned us into weapons."  
  
"What about this time?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"Junian said the second Apocolypse was during this era. Since you did the other two, I assume you're going to do this one as well?"  
  
He sounded angry. "Jim, your world isn't destroyed."  
  
"No, but you and Illkune will destroy it, for what reason I don't know."  
  
He looked up at her, sending the book flying against the wall.  
  
"What...? What the hell are you wanting me to do?"  
  
"I don't know... This is all so confusing."  
  
Snidva stood up, her chair falling over. "I don't control time, I merely use it as transportation."  
  
"Just...keep yourself on good terms with Illkune. I don't want this world going to ashes."  
  
"Jim, if it happens, it happens. I can't control time."  
  
"Don't fight."  
  
She just sighed and walked out of the room. "Illkune and I have been taken in by you people, by your world who tolerates us like people more than weapons. Why would we destroy it?"  
  
Jim rubbed his eyes and walked over to the coffee machine, dipping two scoops into the filter and filling the coffee pot. Snidva had left the chair on the floor.  
  
Jim hoped that Junian destroyed his experiment, but deep down, he knew that he hadn't. There were going to be three Mimics, the last one pure bred.  
  
Snidva crawled onto the roof, thinking to her brother to wake his ass up and come talk. Illkune was a little less than willing, but he came. He slinked onto the roof, rubbing his eyes and scratching his neck.  
  
"I'm leaving."  
  
Illkune stopped his scratching. "What?"  
  
She stared long and hard at the ground before turning her head and looking at him, her eyes slightly watering. "I'm leaving. If Jim wants to paint me as a criminal, then he can. I'm not going to be around to deal with it."  
  
"Snidva, you've never run away from anything in your life. Why would you care about what Jim says?"  
  
She sniffed and rubbed her eyes. "Because of the records, Jim thinks we're gonna get in a fight and destroy everything. If we're in two separate places, we can't do that right?"  
  
Illkune snorted. "Snidva, what fights? Why does it matter what he thinks?"  
  
"Take care of Bobby."  
  
"No, I'm not letting you leave by yourself."  
  
"Illkune, please. I can handle myself."  
  
"Yeah, I know that, but I can't handle being by myself."  
  
She was quiet, shivering, cold, confused. Illkune wrapped his arms around her, twirling his tail around hers.  
  
"It's going to be okay. Jim doesn't know what he's talking about."  
  
She didn't respond.  
  
"You'd kill Bobby if you left."  
  
"What hasn't he come through? Poor little guy."  
  
"He's not so little anymore, Snid. He's not a kid."  
  
She curled up next to him, staring at the ground.  
  
"I think I'll go back to Atlantis."  
  
"Stay here. Things will blow over. Please? For my sake if no one else's."  
  
She was silent, just staring at the ground. He hugged her and looked at the sky.  
  
"Let Insomnia think what he wants to think. That fight was an accident, and we were being controlled the next."  
  
"Dammit, Jim!" 


End file.
